Poké Ronpa: Escape from Tao Academy
by KeybladeWar15
Summary: Based off of Dangan Ronpa. Cilan and 14 other familiar Trainers are trapped inside Tao Academy; an exclusive private Pokémon Academy for only the most elite and strongest of Trainers, and being held hostage by a sadistic robotic Teddiursa. And the only way to get out? Kill another student and get away with the crime. Rated T for obvious reasons.
1. Arrivals and Reunions

**Author's Note:** Hey guys, what's up? During my last weeks of summer vacation (I'm now a sophomore in high school BTW), I've been inspired to write this. It's obviously based off of Dangan Ronpa, so that's why I used the "Super High School Level" term for the talents. Another reason is because this takes place 2 years from Best Wishes (so everyone's about high school age now). I also came up with the name Tao Academy from the Unova's own legendary Tao Trio (Zekrom, Reshiram, Kyurem). I was going to wait until I finished the second chapter to upload this, but I changed my mind. So with that, enjoy my new story!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon or Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

Cilan looked at the sheet of paper with a feeling of great anticipation as he approached the large building. Recently, he had been accepted into Tao Trainers' Academy for the Elite and Gifted, a private school located in Lacunosa Town for elite trainers like himself. He first heard from the school when Cress and Chili had been accepted the previous week (though Cress had gotten his letter two days before Chili got his). For the fifth time, the now S-Rank Connoisseur's excited eyes had skimmed the same words:

**_Dear Ex-Gym Leader Cilan of the Striaton City Gym,_**  
**_You and 14 others have been humbly invited to attend Tao Trainers' Academy for the Elite and Gifted. Those who graduate from this exclusive Trainers' School are almost guaranteed to have successful futures. Once you receive this letter, you will be bestowed with the title of "Super High School Level Connoisseur". _**  
**_Sincerely, The Headmaster._**

"Hmm, 'Super High School Level Connoisseur' has quite a savory taste to it," remarked Cilan, "I like it! Alright, it's School Time!"

With a determined smile on his face, Cilan put the notice in one of the pockets of his rolling suitcase and entered through the doors. However, he suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion overcome him as the air suddenly filled with a strange gas.

"Wow..." slurred Cilan groggily, "This is quite a sickeningly sweet... aroma..." He then fell to the floor with a thud.

* * *

Cilan opened his eyes to a chalkboard with different status effects and their explanations written all over it. He then leaped from the desk he was sitting at it utter surprise and looked all over the classroom.

"How on Earth did I get in here?" pondered Cilan, "All I remember is walking into the school, and that's it. I wonder what time it is..."

The ex-Gym Leader began to dig into his backpack to look for his Xtransceiver, but much to his shock, it wasn't inside. He then noticed a small electronic device resembling a Kalos Pokédex and pressed the power button.

"Greetings, Cilan," the device said in a light female and slightly robotic voice, making Cilan jump a little, "I am your PokéID, which serves as your Trainer identification, map, calendar, watch, and even schedule."

Cilan's PokéID then flashed to the date and time, which made his emerald eyes go wide in shock. The current date was the day after Cilan had arrived at the school, which made him very worried.

"Impossible! How long was I out for?!" He gasped.

The S-Class Connoisseur turned around to the windows... or at least where the windows would be. All he could see were three large metal plates bolted to the walls.

"Strange..." pondered Cilan, knocking on one of the plates, "This is pure titanium alloy. Why on Earth would someone want to bolt the windows down?"

However, Cilan was immediately cut from his thoughts as a shrill, young, and childish voice rang throughout the mostly barren classroom.

"Attention, attention!" the announcement belted, "Will all students report to the gymnasium at this time? Repeat, all student to the gymnasium!"

Quickly gathering his brown backpack, Cilan scrambled out of the classroom, only to suddenly crash into a female figure.

"Oh, my apologies, Miss- Iris?!" chirped Cilan with a bright smile on his face, "Is that you?!"

"Yeah yeah, that's my name, don't wear it... C-Cilan?!" Iris piped up as she recognized her old travelling companion.

"The one and only~! I didn't know you got accepted into Tao Academy too! Do you have a title as well?"

"Yeah! Apparently I'm now a Super High School Level Dragon Tamer! What's your title?"

"Following my rise to an S-Class Pokémon Connoisseur, I am now known as a Super High School Level Connoisseur~!" exclaimed Cilan flamboyantly, "Oh, such a glorious taste it has!"

"Even after two years, once a kid, always a kid I guess..." Iris groaned, "Ah! We still have to go to the gym to meet the others! Come on!"

Iris then grabbed Cilan's wrist and rushed in the direction of the gym according to her own PokéID's map. When the two finally got there, they were surprised to see some quite familiar faces (and a few they didn't seem to know). Among them were Cilan's older brothers Chili and Cress, his "rival" Burgundy, Iris' rival Georgia, their old friends Bianca, Cheren, and Dawn, Ash's rival Trip, and last but not least, their best friend Ash Ketchum himself.

"Cilan! Iris!" exclaimed Ash as he excitedly rushed over and hugged two of his old travelling companions, "Am I glad to see you two!"

"Ash!" beamed Iris, "It's nice to see you too! What did you get accepted as?"

"I'm a Super High School Level Battler! I guess it must be for all the Gym Battles I've won over the years! What's yours and Cilan's talents?"

"Why, I'm a Super High School Level Connoisseur, and my dear Iris is a Super High School Level Dragon Tamer~!" answered Cilan in a chipper tone.

"Exactly what I was going to say..." sighed Iris.

"Hey guys, I'd also like to introduce you to a few of my old friends!" Ash piped up as he brought Cilan and Iris over to four others. "Guys, I'd like you to meet Brock, Misty, May, and my old rival, Gary Oak."

"Oak?" repeated Cilan as he shook Gary's hand, "Perhaps that means your related to Professor Samuel Oak of Kanto?"

"So you've heard of Gramps?" said Gary as he returned the handshake, "Yep, that's me! Garrett B. Oak: Super High School Level Researcher!"

"And you must be Misty, right?" asked Iris as she looked at the orange-haired girl.

"That's right!" chirped Misty, proudly, "I'm also now a Super High School Level Aquatics Master!"

"You know, Misty," said Iris as she wiggled her eyebrows a little, "Back when Cilan and I were travelling with Ash, he's actually said quite a few good things about you~."

"R-Really?" wondered Misty as she began to blush, "Like what?"

"Well, he's actually said a lot of things, but I can't really remember them all. But, there was this one time that we saw him hug his pillow and say your name in his slee-MRPHM!"

"Okay, that's enough, Iris!" squeaked Ash as he put a hand over her mouth, "Now, I'd like to introduce you and Cilan to my other two friends Brock and May!"

"Very charmed to meet you, Brock," greeted Cilan as he held a palm out, "You're the Gym Leader of the Pewter City Gym in Kanto, right?"

"That's right!" answered Brock as he shook Cilan's hand, "I'm also a Super High School Level Pokémon Breeder!"

"Ah, so you're a Pokémon Breeder! You know, I heard you're quite a cook as well, right?"

"That's right, Cilan! Did you know that when zesting a dish, Grepa Berries are the best choice instead of Belue Berries since they have the right amount of sourness, whilst a Belue Berry has too much sourness and will spoil the dish's flavor?"

"Really?! That's marvelous! Did you know that when Figy Berries are ground correctly, they make a scrumptious curry sauce?"

"No way!"

"Way~!" chirped Cilan. He then turned his head to May, "And you must be May, correct?"

"That's me!" chimed May as she held up a peace sign, "I'm now a Super High School Level Coordinator from all of my travels to compete in different Pokémon Contests~! You're Ash's friend Cilan, right?"

"Indeed, and it is a pleasure to meet you, Miss May!" said Cilan as he kissed the top of May's hand.

"Aha! So you're here as well, Cilan!" a familiar female voice bellowed.

Before he knew it, Cilan was suddenly approached by his old one-sided rival, Burgundy. However, her expression seemed to be one of a friendly smirk rather than one of hate.

"Burgundy!" chirped Cilan, smiling, "What a surprise! How have you been doing over the past two years?"

"For your information, monsieur, I am no longer a meek C-Class Connoisseuse!" boasted Burgundy, "I am now a B-Class Connoisseuse, and this school has bestowed me with the title of 'Super High School Level Connoisseuse'!"

"B-Class? Wow, that's quite an achievement, Burgundy! Congratulations!"

"M-Merci..." muttered Burgundy with a slight blush on her face, "B-But, a simple 'congratulations' is not enough to make me regress! Just watch, garcon, I shall be the best of the best!"

"Same old Burgundy..." thought Cilan with a simple smile.

"Ash, Cilan, Iris~!" an energetic female voice chirped.

Their old friend Bianca came running over to the trio holding Cheren's wrist in her hand. Knowing what usually came next, Ash quickly jumped out of the way before Bianca could knock him down.

"That was close..." sighed Ash.

"Sheesh, Bianca," panted Cheren as he placed a hand on his chest, "Slow down a little! Ash, Cilan, Iris, it's nice to see you three again! Have you been well?"

"Yeah, we have!" exclaimed Ash with excitement, "So how do you know Bianca?"

"Is she your... girlfriend~?" teased Iris, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Gyuh-um- N-NO!" sputtered Cheren with an intense blush on his face,"A-At least not yet..." He mumbled under his breath. "E-Erm... anyways, Bianca is-"

"Cheren and I have known each other since we were little kids!" chirped Bianca, "We've been friends ever since we met!"

"Exactly!" confirmed Cheren, "Although, I do hope we can be more than just friends one day..." He said under his breath as he fumbled with a small black box in his pocket.

"Did you say something, Cheren?"

"N-No, I didn't say anything, Bianca. Oh, and also, I've been accepted into this school as a Super High School Level Teacher, and Bianca is a Super High School Level Lab Assistant."

"Lab Assistant?" wondered Ash.

"That's right!" cheered Bianca as she pushed her glasses up a little, "I'm Professor Juniper's assistant in Nuvema Town!"

"Wow! That's amazing!" shouted Ash.

Noticing his brothers on the other side of the gymnasium, Cilan rushed over to greet them.

"Cilan! So you got accepted after all!" exclaimed Cress.

"So, little bro, what's your title?" asked Chili.

"I am a Super High School Level Connoisseur~!" announced Cilan, "What about you and Cress?"

"Heh heh, I scored the title of Super High School Level Chef, and Cressy here's got Super High School Level Waiter!" remarked Chili passionately.

"Bro, please refrain from calling me 'Cressy'," groaned Cress, "But yes it is true, Cilan; those are our talent titles."

"It does make sense in a way, I suppose," said Cilan, "After all, Cress; out of the three of us, you're best at brewing the best tea water, while Chili has a tendency to 'kick up the heat' when he's the one cooking!"

"Which is the reason we agreed to never let him flambe anything on his own ever again..." added Cress in a slightly annoyed tone as he remembered the several firetrucks rushing to a nearly charcoaled version of the Striaton Gym that day.

"You said you'd never bring that up again..." pouted Chili as he pursed his lips.

"So, have you guys met anyone else?" inquired Cilan.

"As a matter of fact, we have," replied Cress. "Your old friend Dawn is a 'Super High School Level Contestant' on account of her being a Pokémon Coordinator. Then there's also another girl named Georgia, who's a 'Super High School Level Dragon Buster'."

"Oh, Iris won't be too happy about that one..." thought Cilan.

"And, I believe that there's a boy by the name of Trip. His title is 'Super High School Level Photographer', and he seems to know Ash pretty well..."

Suddenly, a booming microphone feedback echoed throughout the gym, causing everyone to cover their ears in pain. As soon as the sound died down, the same young voice Cilan had heard earlier began to cackle childishly.

"Hello, hello!" the voice shouted, "Are all of my test subjects present?"

From a square shaped opening in the gym floor, a Teddiursa stood on top of a rising podium. However, this was definitely no ordinary Teddiursa; this one was colored white on the right side of its face and black on the left with an eerie red eye.

"Greetings, my little Lab Rattatas!" it greeted, "I am your Headmaster, Monoteddi!"

"Oooh!" beamed Bianca as she ran up and gave the monochromatic Little Bear Pokémon a tight hug, "You are just the cutest thing~!"

"Ack, this is assault, this is assault!" cried Monoteddi as it squirmed.

A light in the bear's red eye began to blink as Monoteddi itself began to beep. Gary rushed over to Bianca as the beeping got faster.

"Bianca, watch out!" He cried as he yanked the bear from Bianca's grasp and tossed it into the air.

Everyone watched in shock as the bear exploded. Once Bianca looked away from the explosion, she then looked at Gary (who was still holding her wrists) with a look of slight wonder.

"You okay, Bianca?" asked Gary.

"Y-Yeah... I'm fine~!" chirped Bianca with a slight blush on her face, "Thank you so much, Gary!"

"...S-Sure..." responded Gary as he blushed a bit at Bianca's bright smile.

From another area in the gymnasium, Cheren was watching the whole scene as he began to seethe with a bit of jealousy. But, his face quickly matched everyone's surprise when another Monoteddi popped up from the podium.

"Eh-hem," coughed Monoteddi, "That was quite rude, Miss Bianca; please refrain from hugging me without permission again, or the consequences will be much more severe."

"Y-Yes, Mr. Teddiursa Bear sir!" quivered Bianca in a nervous tone.

"Wait, how the heck did you just appear again?!" asked Dawn, "We just saw you explode!"

"I'm a robotic Teddiursa, Miss Dawn," said Monoteddi flatly, "I can do whatever I please! Anyways, since you all are here, I can finally tell every one of you prisoners the school's guidelines~!"

"Prisoners?" asked Trip, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, don't you know, silly? You're all trapped within this school!"

"TRAPPED?!" Everyone exclaimed in shock.

"Upupupupu~!" chuckled Monoteddi, "That's right! Trapped like the lab Rattata you are~! Didn't you all notice the way the windows and main entrance are bolted shut?"

"That must explain the bolted windows in the classroom I woke up in!" exclaimed Cilan.

"Now that you mention it," said Georgia, "When I looked at the main entrance, it had some complex lock system on it!"

"That's right~!" shouted Monoteddi, "And have you all noticed something is missing off of all of you~? Other than your Xtransceivers of course!"

"Missing? What are you-" wondered Dawn, "Ahh! My Pokémon are gone!"

"Gyahh! Mine too!" screamed Iris, "Axew and the others are gone!"

"Upupupu~! I've taken the liberty of pilfering almost all of your Pokémon!" cackled Monoteddi as he pushed a cart with Pikachu, Axew, and thirteen Poké Balls labeled with their Trainer's name sitting on it. "But, since I'm a generous little Teddiursa, I've decided to leave you each with one Pokémon!"

After Ash and Iris were happily reunited with their partner Pokémon, the other trainers each took their respective Poké Balls. Cilan was reunited with "premium brand" Pokémon Pansage, Cress with Panpour, Chili with Pansear, Misty with Golduck, Brock with Toxicroak, May with Blaziken, Burgundy with Dewott, Trip with Serperior, Georgia with Beartic, Dawn with Piplup, Cheren with Stoutland, Bianca with Emboar, and lastly, Gary with Umbreon. However, everyone's happiness was interrupted by another cackle from Monoteddi.

"So, is everyone so so happy to see their partners again?" asked Monoteddi, "Good, because you all are going to be elated to hear that there is indeed a way to escape this school~!"

"Really?!" exclaimed Ash, "How do we do it?"

"It's quite simple, Mr. Ketchum," answered Monoteddi, "In order for someone to escape Tao Academy, they must take another student's life!"

"Take another student's life?!" repeated May in disbelief, "You... you don't mean?!"

"Upupupu! That's right, Miss May! The only way to escape is to murder one of your dearest human friends! But, you have to be successful in committing it; Because if the murderer gets found out, they will be executed in the cruelest way possible! Well, Happy Killing, my little test subjects~!"

Judging by the sadistic grin on Monoteddi's face and the way it sharpened its claws before it suddenly disappeared, it wasn't a lie. Everyone stood there paralyzed with shock (minus Bianca, who was being comforted by Gary and Cheren as she was on her knees sobbing) at the appalling thought of taking another's life.

"Commit murder...?" thought Cilan, still in disbelief, "Such an unruly taste... Th-There's just no way someone could do that...!"

* * *

**Students remaining:** 15/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Monoteddi (or if I were to use a Japanese translation, Monoguma from Teddiursa's Japanese name) is supposed to be voiced by Tara Strong (using her Ping-Pong voice if you've watched Xiaolin Chronicles), BTW. And, here's a list of the students' ages (according to the age I thought they were in canon, just subtract two):

**Ash-** 13

**Iris-** 15

**Cilan, Chili, and Cress-** 17

**Burgundy-** 16

**Georgia-** 15

**Trip-** 14

**Brock-** 17

**Misty-** 14

**Bianca-** 16

**Cheren-** 16

**May-** 14

**Gary-** 14

**Dawn-** 13

So, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, and stay tuned for Chapter 2~!


	2. Serving Up a Dish called Death

**Author's Note:** Hey-O~! Here's the second chapter for all of you lovelies~! I don't wanna go into details just yet (though I will say that there's the first "Free Time" event, though not all of the students will get them), so just kick back, relax, and enjoy the chapter! (PS, I suck at naming chapters!)

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon or Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

The students all left the gymnasium to explore the building a bit in an attempt to not only clear their minds, but to also see what the school had to offer. Cilan saw on his PokéID's map that there was a kitchen, so he went there in hopes that a good meal would cheer a few people up. As he was sprinkling paprika into his goulash, he gave it a little taste testing, but raised an unsure eyebrow at it.

"This goulash is certainly scrumptious," thought Cilan, "But... I can't help but think it needs something."

"Need a hand, Cilan?" asked Brock as he entered the kitchen.

"Oh, hello there, Brock!" greeted Cilan as he waved to him, "And no, the goulash I'm making for everyone is under control; I just feel like I could add something else to it to give it an even more extraordinary flavor..."

Brock gave the goulash a taste testing of his own, and he did agree that it needed a bit more "spice" to it. Looking around, he noticed a bin full of fresh Berries and was quite amazed when he saw a rather rare Petaya Berry. Having heard about the Berry's unique spicy-yet-bitter flavor, Brock cut it in half and minced one of the halves. Tasting some of the mince, he smiled as he added it to Cilan's goulash.

"Try tasting it now, Cilan," suggested Brock.

Cilan poured a little bit of goulash into a small bowl and gave it one more taste. His vivid green eyes widened as the exotic taste that the slight spiciness gave the goulash filled his mouth with wonder.

"A-Amazing!" beamed Cilan with the utmost passion, "The robustness of the spicy and bitter berry gives the goulash the missing flavor it desires so much! I've gotta say, Brock, you truly are an exemplary chef!"

"Thanks, Cilan!" exclaimed Brock, "But you know, you're also pretty good at cooking too! If anything, I think you should have been the one to get the 'Super High School Level Chef" title!"

"Well, I really wouldn't say that! After all, I'm skilled at many things other than cooking! And that's what makes me a Super High School Level Connoisseur! Anyways, it's Lunch Time~!" chirped Cilan.

The very aroma of the goulash seemed to have attracted a fair amount of students to the cafeteria. Ash, Iris, and May were the first ones to sit down (most likely due to their appetites), and Cheren, Bianca, and Gary soon arrived in the room.

"Say, Bianca," said Cheren as he smiled calmly, "Would you like to sit next to me?"

"Hmm? Oh, no thanks, Cheren," answered Bianca, "I already promised Gary that I'd keep him company!"

"I-I see..." grimaced Cheren as he shot a nasty glare at Gary.

"Yo, Cheren!" exclaimed Gary as he gave Cheren a friendly wave, "You can sit next to us if you want! I don't mind one bit!"

"No thank you, Mr. Oak..." snarled Cheren, eating a bit of goulash, "I'm fine where I am, thank you."

"Mmm-mmm!" exclaimed Ash as he ate the last of his goulash, "Cilan, I don't know how ya do it, but this stuff sure is delicious!"

"Ash, it's not 'stuff'," groaned Iris, "It's called goulash! Sheesh, even at thirteen years old, you're still a kid..."

"Come on, Iris!" chirped May, "Lighten up a little! Besides, the goulash is delicious!"

"Oh, alright..." sighed Iris, "But yeah, this goulash is totally awesome!"

The rest of the students then came into the cafeteria and took a seat. Although Cress, Chili, Misty, and Dawn took some of Cilan and Brock's dish, Trip, Burgundy, and Georgia simply refused some since they weren't very focused on eating at the moment.

"So, has anyone else in this room even bothered to try and find an exit?" asked Georgia. "No? Okay, then you all must be pretty content with being prisoners."

"Excusez-moi!" objected Burgundy, slamming both hands on the table, "But I don't see you looking for an exit either, mademoiselle!"

"On the contrary," added Trip, "Georgia and I have been trying to find a way out of here all day."

"That's right," confirmed Georgia, "Trip and Serperior did a bit of investigating around the school, while I had Beartic try and break down some of the windows and doors. Unfortunately... none of us had any luck."

"Ha! That means you lack the right to criticize the others when you yourself have failed at such a task!"

"Oh, shut up, will ya?" sneered Georgia.

"Why I never!" scoffed Burgundy, "You are tres grossier, mademoiselle!"

* * *

A couple hours after the scrumptious meal, it was now almost six in the evening. Cilan was roaming the halls with a worried Pansage clinging to his back.

"Sage..." whimpered Pansage.

"What's wrong, buddy?" asked Cilan.

"Pan, Pansage..." answered Pansage as he nuzzled his Trainer's face.

"I see. You're still worried about the whole idea of murdering one of our friends..." sighed Cilan as he put an assuring hand on Pansage's hand. "I'll admit it's such a putrid flavor, but don't worry! We're all comrades for the most part, so I doubt anyone would even dare to commit such a horrendous crime."

Cilan then suddenly bumped into Gary, who was looking at the note in his hands with a blush and a smile.

"Oh sorry, Cilan!" He apologized, "I didn't see you there! Listen, I was wondering..."

"Wondering what?" questioned Cilan.

"I-If we could take a little walk together and, if I could have some... advice."

Cilan's eyes sparkled with wonder upon hearing Gary's request. Being a Super High School Level Connoisseur, advice giving was only one of his numerous specialties.

"Well, Mr. Oak, I'd say you've come to the right S-Class Connoisseur~!" exclaimed Cilan with a determined look in his eyes, "I'd be more than elated to give you advice!"

He then took Gary by the wrist and dragged him towards the library for some privacy. As soon as they sat down at a nearby table, Cilan rested his chin on his hands with an anticipating look in his eyes.

"Sooo, Mr. Oak," chirped Cilan, "What would you like to consult me about?"

"...I need advice... on love," squeaked Gary as he turned away and blushed.

"Love advice? Ah yes, the sweet and passionate flavor of amour~! So, who's the lucky mademoiselle?"

Gary didn't say a word, but instead just smiled and gave Cilan a note. The note had read:

_Dear Gary,_  
_I just wanted to thank you for being so nice to me. Back in orientation, I thought that cute little black and white Teddiursa was going to kill me, but you stepped in just in time to save me. Also, I didn't think we'd have so much in common! I never thought I'd meet someone who works in a Pokémon Lab and helps out a famous Professor (although, yours is your grandpa, so that makes sense), and we both use to take on different Pokémon Leagues and wanted to become stronger! So... if it's not too much trouble, would you like to try and get to know each other better? If you say yes, then meet me in the Pokémon Research Lab room tomorrow at noon? _  
_-Bianca._

_P.S., your Umbreon is soooo adorable and really friendly~! Can you bring the little darling along with you?_

"You have a date with Bianca?" asked Cilan, "Well congratulations, Mr. Oak!"

"Please feel free to call me Gary," insisted Gary, "And yes, before she skipped off, she gave me this note and a kiss on the cheek! B-But... she's so nice, bubbly, and adorable that I'm afraid I'll slip up and say the wrong thing! What should I say to her?!"

"Calm down, Mr. Oa- erm, Gary," assured Cilan, "Bianca may be energetic and even a bit flighty, but she's also a girl with a proverbial big heart! Just tell her a bit about yourself, be confident yet courteous, and above all, be yourself!"

"Really? That's all I've gotta do?" asked Gary.

"Trust me, if you follow that recipe, you and Bianca are sure to be happy together!"

"Thank you so much, Cilan! Are you always this good with advice?"

"Well, I am also a Romance Connoisseur among many other things~!"

"That explains it, I guess. Thanks for the advice, Cilan! Who knows? Maybe you'll also find someone special with that expertise!"

"Actually, my heart does belong to one particular girl..." muttered Cilan as his face turned pink, "But, I think I'll cross that bridge when I come to it! Good luck with Bianca, Gary!"

Upon exiting the library a few minutes after Gary, Cilan caught a glimpse of Cheren. However, he was a bit alarmed when he saw Monoteddi was whispering something into his ear and the Super High School Level Teacher's face changed from heartbreak to anger. As soon as Cheren stormed off, Cilan quickly approached Monoteddi.

"What did you say to Cheren, Headmaster?" question Cilan with a worried tone.

"Oh nothing of too much importance, Mr. Cilan~!" giggled Monoteddi, "Now, why don't you run along now? After all, there's only four hours left until mandatory Bed Time!"

Not wanting to cause any trouble with the demonic Teddiursa robot, Cilan decided to just move ahead. For the remaining four hours, Cilan pretty much roamed the first floor of the school until 3 tones rang followed by an announcement.

"Attention, attention!" announced Monoteddi from a nearby TV monitor, "It's now 10 o'clock and time for all good little test subjects to go to bed!"

"I suppose a good night's sleep is for the best..." thought Cilan, "After all, it could be just what the doctor ordered!"

Once he had changed into his pajamas and brushed his teeth, Cilan crawled underneath the covers and slowly drifted off into sleep.

* * *

The next morning, the grassy-haired S-Class Connoisseur was awoken by Monoteddi's eccentric wake-up call announcement.

"Good morning, my darling testees~!" chirped Monoteddi, "It is now 7 o'clock, which means it's time to begin the day~!"

Cilan gave a little yawn and began to get dressed. However, as he was adjusting his bowtie, he heard several rings of his room's doorbell. He answered the door only to see a distressed Bianca and Gary's Umbreon.

"Bianca, what's the matter?" asked Cilan.

"I have no idea!" cried Bianca, "I was ready to go to breakfast when Umby here started tugging at my Capris! I think something terrible might have happened! Come on!"

"Umby?" thought Cilan until Bianca yanked him out of his bedroom by the wrist.

With Umbreon leading the way, the three of them stopped upon reaching the Research Lab door. Bianca jiggled the door handle only to find it locked. Umbreon then took a sniff at the door and it's eyes widened with horror at the scent.

"Umbree-Umb!" exclaimed Umbreon.

Umbreon showed no signs of hesitation before using Shadow Ball to blast open the once-locked door. When Cilan and Bianca looked inside, they both gasped in horror at what they had seen.

It was Gary Oak; lying on the floor lifeless with an extension cord constricted tightly around his neck.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 14/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** And so we have the first murder! I know it was a bit soon, but I'm trying my best to give a fair amount of time before each murder happens, but since this is the first one, it's an exception! Any-who, before I head off to bed myself, I'm just gonna say: Stay tuned for Chapter 3!


	3. Investigation Period 1

**Author's Note:** Alright, my dearest readers~! Here's the promised update for ya! Heads up though: Since it's only the evidence investigation chapter, it's not very long. But, I hope you guys enjoy it regardless! Happy reading!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon or Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

"Gary!" wailed Bianca as tears leaked from her eyes.

"How... how could this have happened?!" exclaimed Cilan.

"No, no!" cried Bianca as she hugged Gary's corpse tightly, "You can't be dead, Gary! You just can't be!"

Bianca placed her index and middle fingers over Gary's neck and wrist, and even tried to listen for a heartbeat. But much to her despair, there was nothing. After shutting Gary's eyelids closed, Bianca buried her face in her hands and sobbed as Cilan rubbed her back and Umbreon curled up onto her knees.

"Ding dang dong! Ding dang dong! Looks like a body has been discovered! All students report to the Research Lab~!" Monoteddi announced from the intercom.

As Bianca was wiping her tears away, she noticed two pieces of paper sticking out of each of Gary's pockets and took both of them out. She recognized the first one as the note she gave to Gary telling him to meet her that day at noon, but there was another unfamiliar note written in cursive that read:

_Dear Gary,_  
_Please meet me in the Research Lab early tomorrow morning at 6:00. I have something I've wanted to tell you for a long long time._  
_-Bianca_

"Bianca, did you send Gary a second note?" asked Cilan as he held the mysterious piece of paper in his hands.

"No, I only sent him one," insisted Bianca, "U-Unless...!"

At that moment, the other twelve students came into the Research Lab. Everyone had shocked expressions on their faces at the sight of Gary Oak's lifeless body.

"Gary!" shouted Ash in a distressed voice, "How the heck did this happen?!"

"Upupupu! Isn't it obvious, Mr. Ketchum~?" chirped Monoteddi as it suddenly came into the room, "Our poor unfortunate Mr. Oak has been murdered by one of you!"

"What?!" exclaimed Dawn, "By one of us?!"

"Impossible!" objected Cheren, "There's no way that one of us would do something so sadistic!"

"Actually, Mr. Cheren, it is indeed possible~!" retorted Monoteddi, "You see, every single room in this entire school is under surveillance, so I have the privilege of witnessing every murder that occurs! Now, before I start rambling on again, I believe you students have some crime scene investigating to do before the trial! See you in two hours, my lovely Lab Rattatas!"

Once Monoteddi had made its leave, the remaining students were still in disbelief. First, their classmate and friend gets killed, and now it turns out one of them did it. Cilan's face quickly shifted from being forlorn to a look of serious determination.

"Cilan?" asked May, "Is something wrong?"

"I'm not going to just sit here and mope any longer!" declared Cilan, "Our dear comrade has been killed, and I'm going to find out whodunit!"

He then pulled seemingly out of nowhere his brown sleuthing hat and magnifying glass. "It's Detective Time~!"

"There he goes again..." groaned Iris, slapping her forehead, "Just like old times..."

"Now, everyone begin searching for more evidence. I recommend checking Gary's bedroom, all around the lab, or even the body itself!" exclaimed Cilan, "As Monoteddi said, we've got two hours!"

Following Cilan's orders, Cress, Chili, Georgia, Burgundy, Misty, May, and Brock left to go find more evidence outside of the lab. Trip took a few snapshots of Gary's body and the parts of the lab that were slightly wrecked, and Cilan was looking at his PokéID for a bit more info.

"The victim is Gary Oak," he read from his device, "The time of death was around 6:10 am, and the body was found in the Pokémon Research Laboratory. The cause of death was asphyxiation."

"Hey, Cilan!" Cheren called out as he held up a section of the black cord wrapped around Gary's neck, "I think I found the murder weapon!"

"Interesting..." pondered Cilan as he examined it, "It appears to be an extension cord of some sort. The reel also looks to be a little dented."

"An extension cord?" asked Bianca as she studied Gary's neck carefully, "Well, that would explain the marks!"

Once all of the necessary evidence was obtained, everyone in that room began to leave in order to find more proof in other areas of the school. Bianca gave one last tearful kiss on the cheek to Gary's corpse before following the others. Axew took a peek out of Iris' hair and noticed something else in the lab. Hopping out of his follicular sanctuary, Axew picked up the mysterious item and stared at it.

"Ax, Axew..." He thought.

Iris returned to the lab to retrieve her partner Pokémon. She quickly picked him up and gave him a slightly scoldful look.

"Axew, you really shouldn't run off like- huh?" Iris stopped as she finally saw the reason why Axew went back.

She then took the small item from the Tusk Pokémon's tiny hands and examined it herself. Upon a closer look, Iris gasped; realizing that it had belonged to the culprit themself. And not only that, but the item also revealed the culprit's identity.

"No..." thought a teary-eyed Iris, "It can't be! It's just not possible!"

Putting the item in her pocket, Iris gathered Axew back into her hair and hurried to catch up with the others.

* * *

Sometime later, everyone was just about finished with gathering evidence for the upcoming school trial. Iris then entered the room with a somber look in her eyes.

"Iris?" asked Cilan, "What's the matter?"

Before Iris could say a word, however, several rings not unlike those of clock tower chimes rang out loudly.

"Time's up, my sweet testees~!" chirped Monoteddi as its face appeared on a small TV screen, "Now, would you all gather the necessary evidence and report to the elevator down the hall?"

The fourteen students headed to the end of the dormitory hall until they came across a white marble cage elevator. Once all of the students had entered, the door closed shut automatically and the elevator began to descend. After about five minutes, the elevator had come to a stop.

"Well everyone," announced Cilan, "It looks like It's Trial Time! Let's go!"

* * *

**Students remaining:** 14/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Fun Fact: The chimes are actually supposed to sound similar to the United Kingdom's own Big Ben! Anyways, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, because in the next chapter, we go to the very first school trial~! Stay tuned for Chapter 4!


	4. School Trial 1

**Author's Note:** And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for~! *hums Krusty Krab Training Video dun-duhs* Chapter 4, AKA: The First Trial! For the trial positions, it goes (counter-clockwise from Monoteddi) Cilan, Iris, Trip, May, Cress, Bianca, Brock, Georgia, Cheren, Dawn, Chili, Burgundy, Ash, Misty, and Gary. Although most of you are probably going to hate me by the end of this chapter, enjoy~!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon or Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

They were all surrounded by a large trial room complete with witness stands forming a circle, a judge's bench, and a metal bolted door. When the students all took to the stands of their choosing, Monoteddi rose from behind the bench holding a gavel designed similarly to that of a Metagross.

"I'm so glad you all could make it~!" chimed Monoteddi, "Welcome to the first ever Tao Academy school trial! Before we begin, I'd like to explain on how a school trial works. You see, by using the evidence that was gathered from earlier, it's up to each of you to deduce the victim's murderer. However, you also have to be sure to vote for the correct person~!"

"What happens if we persecute the wrong person?" asked Misty.

"Oh, I think I'll reveal that later, Miss Misty~!" chirped Monoteddi.

"Hold on," interrupted Cress, pointing a finger forward, "Would you care to explain that sign over there, Monoteddi?"

"Sign? Oh yes, that's right!" exclaimed Monoteddi as it pointed to a sign with Gary's face crossed out with a red 'X', "I figured that it would be a shame to leave our late Super High School Level Researcher out of such a momentous occasion, so I decided to make him a little memorial where he would stand! So without further ado, let the trial begin!"

"I suppose we should start with the basics," suggested Cilan, "Like the victim and the cause of death."

"Well, the victim was obviously Gary Oak," said Georgia, "We all saw the dead body."

"As for the cause of death, he was strangled, right?" pondered Dawn.

"Tch, such a low blow!" shouted Chili in anger, "Strangling someone to death with your own bare hands like that!"

"On the contrary, Chili!" exclaimed Cilan, "The culprit did not strangle Gary using their bare hands, but rather an extension cord found in one of the lower cupboards of the lab!"

"What? Really?" wondered Chili, "Bah, that's even worse!"

"Alright, so we know where he was murdered and how it was done," inquired Brock, "But, now we need to know when he died."

"Well, according to my PokéID, Gary's time of death was at about 6:10 am," stated Cilan.

"In addition, I found that Gary's alarm clock was set for 5:30 am," added May, "So, that means whoever killed him must have been in the Research Lab between those two times."

"Now, who could possibly lack an alibi?" wondered Cress, "It wasn't me because I didn't wake up until 6:50 to make myself some early morning jasmine tea."

"That's right," agreed Brock, "I came into the kitchen to prepare breakfast at around 6:30-ish and I saw you come in."

"I guess you two are in the clear..." said Trip, "But what about Cilan and Bianca?"

"Us?!" shrieked Cilan and Bianca in unison.

"That's outrageous!" objected Cheren, "I know for a fact that Bianca would never do something horrific like commit murder! And the same goes for Cilan too!"

"Think about it, Cheren," added Trip, "When everyone got called down to the Research Lab, weren't those two already in there ahead of time? For all we know, they could've been there getting rid of the evidence or something."

"I object!" shouted Cilan, "For you see, Trip, I woke up at 7 o'clock, which is when Monoteddi rang its little wake up call."

"It's the truth," added Bianca, "After Umby came to tell me that something was wrong, we went to Cilan's room and he was finishing up on getting dressed."

"...Alright, you're off the hook then, Cilan," sighed Trip, "However, that still doesn't clear up Bianca's name. I still think she's fairly guilty."

"I am not guilty!" pouted Bianca, "Don't you remember? I went to Cilan's room and I didn't see the body until after we went to the Research Lab."

"Oh? And how do we know you didn't just pretend to see the body for the first time, hmm?" questioned Trip. "Admit it; you killed Gary."

"No! No! I didn't kill him!" wailed Bianca as she began sobbing.

"If you know what's good for you, Trip, you'll leave her alone," sneered Cheren as he went over to comfort the sobbing Super High School Level Lab Assistant. "Shhh it's okay, Bee; don't let him get to you."

Although Cilan still wasn't quite sure on who the true culprit is, he had to think of a way to fix things. He gasped as one, or rather, two pieces of evidence came to mind.

"Halt! I know for a fact that Bianca is indeed innocent!" announced Cilan as he pulled out two pieces of paper.

"Cilan, wh-what are those?" gasped Cheren.

"These two notes were in Gary's pockets when Bianca and I found his body," explained Cilan. "Yesterday, Gary showed me this note written by Bianca telling him to meet her in the Research Lab at noon today. And yet, this other note says to come at 6 o'clock in the morning. If you compare them both, the 6 o'clock note does not match Bianca's handwriting at all."

"Then that means Bianca had no idea that Gary had gone to the lab six hours earlier!" exclaimed Misty.

"Who could've written the fake note then?" asked Ash.

"That's just what we're going to find out, my friend!" answered Cilan, boldly.

Cilan then took out twelve individual blank index cards and handed out one to each person. He instructed each of them to write Bianca's name in cursive with a pen on one side, and sign their name on the other. When the pen had gotten to Cheren, however, he hestitated a bit before completing the task and passing it to Dawn on his right. Cilan then retrieved each index card and began to look through them for a match to the counterfeit note's signature.

"Let's see..." uttered Cilan, "Georgia, no. Trip, no. Chili's for some reason says the word... 'Branch'?"

"No! That clearly says Bianca, bro!" pouted Chili, "You must need glasses or something."

"And you must need proper cursive lessons..." mumbled Cilan. "Anyways, no, no, no... Eureka! Ladies and Gentleman, we've found our culprit!"

"Well, who is it?" questioned Burgundy, "Who is our meurtrier?"

Without a word, Cilan raised an index finger and pointed to the one person in between Georgia and Dawn.

"CHEREN?!" Everyone shouted.

"Wha-wha-ME?!" gasped Cheren, "Not possible! You must have the wrong person!"

"I don't know; yours and the killer's cursive look awfully similar..." stated Cilan.

"Ch-Cheren..." whimpered Bianca as she gave Cheren a sad look, "Did... did you really do it?"

"N-No!" denied Cheren, "I would never do something like that to Gary! B-Besides, Cilan, you can't persecute someone based on simple cursive!"

"Well, you did look rather suspicious when you were signing your index card, Cheren," added Cilan, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was because you were afraid of getting caught once I saw your handwriting."

"Er-Erm... well, what other proof do you have that I did it? After all, you're gonna need more than a petty index card."

"Come to think of it," pondered Georgia, "I don't think I saw you at breakfast today, what happened?"

"I, erm... I must have overslept!" chuckled Cheren, "After all, I was feeling rather sluggish!"

"From what?" asked Dawn, "Everyone went to bed at 10 last night. What were you up doing, Cheren?"

"Oh you know, nothing too important!" answered Cheren, "I guess it was one of those moments where I have trouble getting to sleep right away!"

"But Cheren," said Bianca, "You always get a good night's sleep! Unless something was bothering you, you usually have no trouble catching a wink of sleep!"

"Well... I guess it was just an unexpected turn of events!" squeaked Cheren. "Now, why don't you stop making up ridiculous theories, Cilan? You're being such a bother."

"Not so fast, Cheren!" Iris spoke up, "When you, Cilan, and the others left the Research Lab, I found one last piece of evidence."

Iris reached deep into her pocket to reveal the item Axew had curiously picked up: A small black ring box. The very sight of the object made Cheren's eyes widen to the size of dinner plates.

"That's... that's my promise ring!" gasped Cheren, "How did you get it?!"

"Axew found it lying on the floor near Gary's body," answered Iris, "When I looked inside, I knew that it could only belong to you."

"Since we have all of the evidence together," said Cilan, "Let's recap the whole case! First, sometime after Gary had left me in the library, he found the culprit's note. That night before he went to bed, he set his alarm for 5:30 since he needed time to prepare for meeting with whom he thought would be Bianca. When Gary arrived at the lab at six, he instead came face to face with the culprit, who probably attacked him on sight. For about ten minutes, the two had quite a struggle, hence why a section of the lab was in shambles, until the culprit finally grabbed a nearby reel and used the extension cord to strangle Gary until he died. Not noticing that the promise ring box had fallen out of their pocket during the struggle, the culprit then quickly cut the cord from the reel, locked the door from the inside, and left through the second door connected to the nearby classroom. And so, once they had made sure no one was awake, the exhausted murderer slipped back to their bedroom to rest. Aren't I right... Cheren?"

The Super High School Level Teacher was completely speechless. He had looked down at the ground with his face shifting from fear to a calm, yet somber smile.

"Heh... I've gotta hand it to you, Cilan," remarked Cheren, calmly, "You truly are quite a sleuth. I might as well admit it; I murdered Gary Oak."

"Cheren?!" wailed Bianca, "Why... Why would you do such a thing?!"

"Simple, Miss Bianca~!" chirped Monoteddi, "Mr. Cheren here got a little visit from the Green-Eyed Monster!"

"Green-Eyed Monster?" wondered Bianca, "What could Cheren possibly be jealous of?"

"Just take a look at the box, and you'll have the answer!" suggested Monoteddi.

Iris walked over and handed Bianca the promise ring box. The message on the top that read "For Bianca, my one true love" was enough to shock Bianca, but what was inside had truly broken her. Inside was a gold ring with "C + B" inscribed on it, and a familiar photo of a younger version of herself in front of the Rondez-View Ferris Wheel in Nimbasa City while embracing a younger Cheren, who was holding the Bolt Badge held high with a big grin on his face.

"The promise ring... was for me?" gasped Bianca.

"Correct, Miss Bianca!" answered Monoteddi, "Poor Mr. Cheren over here was head over heels for you!"

"Ahem," coughed Cheren, annoyed, "Y-Yes... I was planning on giving it to you and asking you to, erm... be my girlfriend. But, that stupid Gary came along and... and just stole you away from me! I tried not to let my feelings get the better of me, but then Monoteddi came and told me about how you were going to confess your own romantic feelings to Gary in the Research Lab and that he felt the same way!"

Cheren then dropped to his knees and buried his teary eyes in his palms.

"I'm so sorry!" He choked between sobs, "I let my own jealousy get the better of me! You were probably better off with Gary instead of such a selfish monster like me!"

"Cher-bear..." breathed Bianca as she gently held Cheren's hand, "I don't think you're a monster at all. You and Gary were both very dear to me, and despite what you did, I could never hate you even if I tried!"

"No, Bianca..." sniffed Cheren, "I don't deserve to be forgiven... I-I'm a murderer!"

"That's right! You are a murderer, Mr. Cheren~!" Monoteddi pointed out maliciously, "Which reminds me; it's time to vote for the culprit! Place your votes, my test subjects, place your votes~!"

At each stand, a touch screen popped up showing a list of the students names and faces (with Gary's slot grayed out) in alphabetical order followed. Once everyone unanimously voted for the obvious choice, a large screen unveiled in back of Monoteddi's bench playing a brief fanfare as it showed Cheren's face above the word "Guilty" written in red capital letters.

"Ding ding ding, that's correct!" cheered Monoteddi, "Everyone's hypothesis has been proven right! The one who murdered Gary Oak was none other than Cheren! Well, since that's out of the way, it's time for Mr. Cheren to be **EXECUTED**!"

"Executed?!" Everyone gasped.

"Upupupu, weren't you all listening to me on the first day? I clearly stated that if a student commits murder, they have to make sure everyone doesn't find out they did it! Because if they get found out during the trial, they will be sentenced to a cruel and unusual death to repent for their misdeeds! However, had everyone voted for the wrong person, then everyone but the real culprit would die instead, and the guilty student would go free! Any-who, it's time for the punishment~!"

"No, please don't do this!" pleaded Cheren with tears falling from his eyes, "I can't die! I have students back in Aspertia City, and they need me!"

"Well then, I guess those poor children are going to need a new teacher~!" Monoteddi taunted as it slammed a gavel onto a large red button.

"NOOOOOO!" screamed a tearful Cheren as he tossed his hands to his ears.

* * *

The large screen behind the judge's bench showed a pixelated version of Cheren being dragged away at the neck by Monoteddi as the bottom of the screen flashed the words "**CHEREN HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY; COMMENCING EXECUTION**" in big bold letters. Suddenly, the metal bolted door flew open and two chains clamped around Cheren's wrists. Bianca wailed Cheren's name as he was yanked away across a mildly dark school corridor full of lockers. The trial room walls rose up to reveal Cheren braced by the ankles and stomach in the car of a roller coaster. Bianca pounded on the safety glass in sheer terror as Monoteddi (who was dressed as a Beauty from the Nimbasa Gym; complete with the black and blue skin-suit, black stilettos, and even a yellow lightning bolt shaped wig) turned the key to start Cheren's roller coaster car of doom. As the roller coaster car sped up through the classroom-like course, several Monoteddi copies dressed as Preschoolers shot things at Cheren such as thumbtacks through straws instead of spitballs, apple-shaped red rocks, and even paper airplanes with blades for tips. Panting and wounded, Cheren's eyes widened with terror as the roller coaster car came to a screeching halt upon reaching a giant hand holding a large textbook above him. As Monoteddi pushed a lever forward, the last thing Cheren ever felt was the spine of the giant book crushing every bone in his body. From behind the now bloodstained safety glass, Bianca let out a blood-curdling scream of horror at the sight of Cheren's mutilated corpse as the trial room walls returned.

* * *

"CHEREN!" She cried out and turned her eyes to the cackling monochromatic Teddiursa, "You... You monster! Bring him back to me! BRING MY CHEREN BACK!"

"So sorry, Miss Bianca," said Monoteddi in an insincere way, "I'm afraid it's scientifically impossible to bring back the dead~! Oh, and would you look at that! It's already 10 o'clock! Gee, time sure flies when your punishing a murderer, doesn't it? Nighty-night, my precious Lab Rattatas!"

When Monoteddi disappeared, Bianca noticed the black promise ring box lying on the floor. As she slipped the promise ring onto her finger, her spring green eyes filled up with tears and she once again broke down into heartbreaking sobs. As Georgia, Misty, and Brock tried to soothe and calm her down, the other students stood there in shock and sadness at the traumatic memory of seeing their classmate be brutally murdered.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 13/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Now was that first trial a hoot or what~? The culprit was probably obvious from a previous chapter, but the next times they won't be so easy to figure out! BTW, Cheren's execution is called "Study Break" (though I might change it if I think of something better). Stay tuned for Chapter 5!


	5. Repairing Some Broken Hearts

**Author's Note:** Hello, my lovelies! This is just a little update for all of ya! Nothing too major really happens in this chapter (well, maybe a bit major actually) since it's just a Free Time Event chapter. Oh, and for all of you WishfulShippers out there (myself included), you're gonna love the first FT event~! So with that, enjoy the chapter!

**Disclaimer:** I own neither Pokémon nor Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

The following morning, breakfast was rather grim as the traumatic memory of Cheren's brutal execution was trapped inside of everyone's heads. As Brock and Cilan made everyone's choices for breakfast, Georgia couldn't help but notice a fifth empty seat meant to belong to Bianca. Feeling a bit worried, she fled the cafeteria in favor of the Dormitory Wing. Before heading to Bianca's bedroom, however, Georgia decided to take a peek into the Research Lab; only to find Gary's body missing and the lab itself utterly spotless.

"What the heck?!" exclaimed Georgia, "It's almost as if the murder never even happened!"

"That's right, Miss Georgia!" Monoteddi chirped out of nowhere, making Georgia shriek in surprise, "Since it would be unhygenic to leave Mr. Oak to rot the days away in here, I took the liberty of disposing of that icky corpse and tidying up a bit in here!"

"H-Hey! Don't sneak up on me like that, bear!" snapped Georgia as she pointed a finger at Monoteddi.

"Well, that's quite an odd way to thank somebody," sighed Monoteddi, "Anyways, I guess I'll be on my way~!"

Once Monoteddi had skipped off, Georgia left the Research Lab and went to Bianca's bedroom. She rang the doorbell, and the door was actually opened by Gary's Umbreon using Psychic. The only thing Georgia could see inside of the bedroom was Bianca's Emboar and Cheren's Stoutland trying to comfort a lump underneath the bedsheets. When the Super High School Level Dragon Buster walked to the bed, she noticed a few strands of messy blonde hair and pulled the covers back slightly to reveal a listless, sniffling, and depressed Bianca; who's eyes were red and tired from crying all night until exhaustion.

"Y-You alright, Bee?" asked Georgia sincerely.

"...Not really..." sniffed Bianca as she stroked the promise ring that was never taken off of her finger, "I-It's all my fault, isn't it...?"

"Is what your fault?"

"E-Everything! If only I hadn't neglected Cheren's feelings, and if I hadn't written that stupid note to Gary, they'd both still be alive! Oh, why am I such an insensitive idiot! M-Maybe I should be the one that dies next! Someone like me deserves such a thing!"

As Bianca began to sob once again, Georgia put a gentle hand on the mournful blonde's head. She began to stroke the messy follicles and tried quietly shushing Bianca.

"Bianca, you shouldn't say something like that," assured Georgia remorsefully, "After all, there are people who care about you a lot."

"Like who?" choked Bianca, "After what I caused, why would people still want to care about me?"

"You haven't caused anything. It's that monster Monoteddi's fault! He's the one who manipulated Cheren into killing Gary; you did nothing wrong! Beating yourself up over things that aren't your fault isn't healthy, Bianca. Besides, I'm pretty sure Cheren and Gary would want you to carry on and be strong, not let yourself wallow in self-loathing. Do you understand what I mean?"

"...I-I think so... Y-You really think that they'd want me to be strong, Georgia?"

"Think? I know they would want you to be strong, Bianca. Heck, that's probably one of the many great reasons they fell for you in the first place! Hell, being strong and never forgetting those you care about is probably the best thing to do. See, when I was only eight, I lost my dad. And when I was going through nearly what you're going through right now, I was told that it's fine to be sad, but you can't just wallow in grief for the rest of your life. So after that, I decided to conquer my pain and carry on with my life for my Pop's sake. If it's not too hard, I'd like for you to do the same for Cheren and Gary's sake."

"I...I will," agreed Bianca as she wiped the tears from her eyes, "You're right, Georgia. Drowning myself in this self-hate and pity isn't gonna get me far! I'm a Super High School Level Lab Assistant for Arceus' sake! I was accepted into this school as one of the very best, and that's what I'm gonna keep being! Th-Thank you so much for your help, Georgia..."

"...S-Sure..." said Georgia as she turned slightly pink in the cheeks, "Hey, why don't we go meet the others down in the cafeteria? I'm sure everyone's pretty worried about you."

"Ah, you're right! We really should get down there!"

Before leaving, Bianca quickly changed out of her Musharna-print pajamas and took a quick shower in her bathroom. When she came out, she was in her usual day clothes.

"O-Okay, I'm ready!" exclaimed Bianca as she left her room with Georgia.

When the two girls passed the melancholic Research Laboratory, Bianca couldn't help but feel dejected at the tragedy that had occured inside of that room. However, she kept to her word and quickly chinned up. After reaching the cafeteria, nearly everybody started being kind, yet remorseful towards Bianca by asking her things such as "Are you alright, Bianca?", "You're doing okay, right?", and "I'm so sorry for what happened...".

"Everyone, please," insisted Bianca, "I may still be mourning for Cher-bear and Gary on the inside, but that doesn't mean you guys have to worry, okay? I promise I'll be fine!"

From the kitchen, Cilan couldn't help but smile at Bianca's great inner strength. He was relieved to see that despite having dealt two extremely heavy emotional blows, she was quick to bounce back.

* * *

Some time after breakfast, Monoteddi rang out an announcement saying that a new floor is now accessible to the students since they had survived a school trial. Some of the new features included a Pokémon Battling Gym (complete with a battlefield and stands), an indoor garden, a swimming pool room (that, much to a certain Super High School Level Aquatics Master's delight, resembled the Cerulean Gym in the Kanto region), and much more.

Inside of the garden, Cilan sighed in delight at the fragrant aroma of some of the flowers. He stopped to smell one particular flower that enamored him the most: a purple iris flower.

"Wild and passionate... yet exquisitely fragrant and beautiful~!" sighed Cilan, dreamily, "Oh, it reminds me so much of-"

"Hey, Cilan!" greeted Iris as she skipped inside of the garden.

"I-Iris!" squeaked Cilan as he put the plant with the exact name down, "You startled me- w-wow..."

Cilan stopped mid-sentence as he noticed Iris was wearing a new outfit and hairstyle. She had on a white and light cream colored shirt with a salmon-colored collar, lower knee-length shorts, white and yellow calf high socks with a similar design to her old leggings, and matching pink sneakers. Iris' byzantium hair was also redone into two long low pigtails that dropped down all the way to her knees.

"You okay, Cilan?" asked Iris as she noticed the S-Class Connoisseur was blushing.

"Huh? O-Oh, yes I'm just fine, Iris!" insisted Cilan, "I'm just a bit... enticed by your new look!"

"What, you mean this? Yeah, Dawn and I found out there's also a school salon on the new floor, and it even comes with so many different outfits! She insisted on giving me a makeover, which I refused to at first, but her and Piplup definitely have a way of persuading someone..."

"I didn't think it was possible, Iris, but you look even more radiant than before!" beamed Cilan.

"Really? Thanks, Cilan! Say, since this place has such a big garden, why don't we take a little stroll around and see more of it?"

"J-Just us?! S-Sure, I don't see why not!"

"Awesome, let's go!"

Iris grabbed Cilan by the hand (which seemed to be starting to sweat) and pulled him to another, much larger part of the garden that almost resembled a flowery park of some sort. As Cilan sat on a bench while watching Iris and Axew play in the nearby trees, his heart began to race once again. He then realized since he and Iris were all alone together (give or take one Axew), it was the perfect time to confess to Super High School Level Dragon Tamer about how he felt about her.

"Iris," called Cilan, "Can you p-please come down for a second? There's something I-"

"Hey Cilan, look!" beamed Iris as jumped down from the tree holding an armful of bright red apples, "These apples look so delicious! Wanna share a few with me and Axew?"

"I'd love to, Iris," agreed Cilan as he took an apple.

The Super High School Level Connoisseur merely stared at the apple as Iris and Axew chowed down on about 3 apples a minute. He took a deep breath through his nose and exhaled sharply before mustering up the courage to say something.

"Iris," began Cilan, "There's something I've been wanting to tell you for... quite a long time."

"MRPHMM-GFF?" muffled Iris before swallowing her food, "Y-You have?"

"...Y-Yes..." breathed Cilan as his face turned red and hot. "Iris, since the day I met you and Ash, I've always thought that you were... not like any other girl I've ever seen. But, I soon discovered that you're a passionate and confident young girl with an inner fire that can't ever be quelled! In contrast to my sophistication, you're a free spirit; you let your heart do the talking for you! However, when you made that medicine for Pansage when he fell ill, I discovered that beneath that fiery spirit also lies a kind, sweet, and compassionate young woman who deeply cares about those dear to her. A-And, today I've decided to tell you that it's that very spicy and sweet flavor that's made me fa- faaalll-"

"C-Cilan..." said Iris as she began to blush as well, "Are you trying to say what I think you are?"

"E-Erm... well, what I'm trying to say is that I... I- I LOVE YOU, OKAY?!" confessed Cilan in an extremely nervous tone.

The room was dead silent for a few minutes as Iris stared at Cilan in surprise. The green-haired Connoisseur meekly covered his mouth and looked away from the object of his long-term affections.

"I... I'm so sorry, Iris..." sighed Cilan, "It's alright if you don't return my feelings; I've just wanted to tell you that for the longe-"

Cilan could feel his heart skip a beat upon being suddenly hugged by Iris. He could feel the blush return to his cheeks upon seeing her glorious smile.

"You're such a kid, Cilan," remarked Iris playfully, "When did I ever say I didn't return your feelings~?"

"Huh?! Are you saying... you love me back?!" squeaked Cilan.

"Of course I do, you dork! You may act like total a pain in the ass most of the times, but... I know that you're kind, sweet, and a total gentleman! I know I was a bit harsh on you back then, but... that was only because I was hiding how I truly felt about you!"

"Oh Iris, this makes me so happy! After all this time, I actually thought you... erm, felt this way about Ash..."

"What?! Me and Ash?! Cilan, that's ridiculous! I mean, I guess I can see how you thought that, but Ash and I are only friends! Besides, the guy's denser than a block of wood when it comes to romance..."

Unbeknownst to Cilan and Iris, Axew had crawled out of one of his Trainer's pigtails, and was now resting on her shoulders. Seeing the moment as a perfect time to act, he gave Iris's head a little shove; causing her lips to fall onto Cilan's. The temporary surprise quickly turned romantic as Cilan pushed his lips forward to return the kiss. As the Connoisseur and the Dragon Tamer pulled apart, they looked at each other with awe.

"Th-That was quite a surprise, wasn't it?" asked Cilan as his face turned a shade of Pecha Berry pink.

"Y-Yeah... but you've gotta admit, it was a nice surprise..." answered a blushing Iris. "O-Oh, by the way! I want you to have this, Cilan!"

Iris pulled out from her pocket a silvery-chained necklace with what looked like the Legend Badge as a charm. On the back of the badge was a carved inscription that said "No matter what anyone says about you, you'll always be legendary to me! -Iris".

"Thank you so much, Iris," said Cilan as he put the necklace around his neck, "I love it!"

"Well, I guess I'd better go now," Iris told him, "I promised May that I'd have a battle with her and Blaziken. See you later, Cilan~!"

"A tout a l'heure, mon cherie..." whispered an enamoured Cilan as Iris left the gardens with Axew.

* * *

Not too soon after Cilan had left the indoor gardens himself, he unconsciously bumped into Chili and Cress.

"Whoops! Sorry, guys!" apologized Cilan, "I guess I wasn't looking where I was going!"

"Where have you been at, bro?" asked Chili, "Cressy and I have been bored all day!"

"And where did that rather unique necklace come from?" wondered Cress, pointing to Cilan's Legend Badge necklace.

"I-I... I got it from Iris," responded Cilan with a smile.

"Hmm... 'No matter what anyone says about you, you'll always be legendary to me; -Iris'. Ooohhh, I get it~! You finally confessed to her!" exclaimed Chili, "See, Cressy! I knew he could do it someday!"

"For the last time, Chili; don't call me 'Cressy'..." groaned Cress, "And besides, I never once doubted my baby brother for a second! That is... unlike a certain redheaded younger brother of mine, who thought Cilan was going to get cold feet and wuss out."

"You really thought that, Chili?" pouted Cilan.

"Ah-ha... I have no clue what he's talking about! Anywho, why don't we go watch your new girlfriend and May battle?"

"Sh-She's not my- erm, at least I don't think she's officially my girlfriend!" stuttered Cilan, "Though, I suppose watching one little battle couldn't hurt!"

"Besides, the girls did say they needed a referee," added Cress, "So, why don't the three of us do it altogether."

Upon reaching the Battling Gym, the Striaton Triplets saw that Iris and May were waiting alongside Axew and Blaziken respectively.

"Hooray, you made it!" cheered May, "Although, I really wasn't expecting three referees!"

"Well, the more the merrier, right?" asked Chili.

"Right!" agreed Iris, "Let's start the battle!"

May made the first move by having Blaziken use Sky Uppercut. Blaziken's burly fist managed to send Axew skyrocketing, but he quickly retaliated with an aerial Dragon Pulse.

"Nice one, Axew!" cheered Iris, "Now, use Dragon Claw!"

"Blaziken, dodge and use Blaze Kick when Axew lets its guard down!" commanded May.

Axew kept trying to swipe a glowing blue claw at Blaziken, but the Blaze Pokémon had some pretty good agility. However, he did manage to deflect Blaziken's Blaze Kick attack with Dragon Claw.

"Blaziken, use Blaze Kick once again!" May cried out.

This time, Blaziken's attack was successful as Axew was sent flying across the room and into a wall. As he struggled to get up onto his tiny little feet, Axew began to emit a bright blue glow.

"Is it... is Axew finally?!" gasped Iris.

Axew's body began to grow slightly taller and bulkier. His tusks even got longer along with his tail. Once the glow vanished, the newly evolved Fraxure let out a loud roar.

"Axew! You've finally evolved into Fraxure!" beamed Iris.

"Frax- Fraxure!" exclaimed Fraxure happily. "Frax!"

"You're right! We are gonna finish this battle! Use Dragon Rage!"

"Blaziken, counterattack with Overheat!"

While Fraxure began to charge up a mystic blue beam, Blaziken's entire body turned bright red until it released an extremely powerful blast of fire. And as if on cue, Fraxure released his attack that had increased in power upon evolving. The blasts remained at a stalemate for a few seconds until Blaziken was beginning to get worn out and was overcome by the explosion caused by Fraxure's Dragon Rage. As the smoke cleared, Blaziken was on the ground unconscious.

"Blaziken is unable to battle!" announced Cress.

"Which means..." added Cilan.

"The victory goes to Iris and Fraxure!" finished Chili.

"Awesome job, Blaziken," said May as she returned her Pokémon to its Poké Ball, "You deserve a nice long rest. Oh and Iris, great job on your part too! I mean, you managed to get Axew to evolve!"

"Thanks, May!" replied Iris, "And Fraxure, congrats on evolving! Just a little further and you'll finally be a Haxorus like you've always dreamed!"

"Frax! Frax-Fraxure~!" cheered Fraxure.

"Attention, attention!" Monoteddi rang out from a small TV on the Gym's wall, "It is now 10 0'clock, and you all know what that means! It's time for all of my precious Lab Rattatas to head on off to the Dream World!"

Once they all left the Gym, Chili, Cress, and May all went to their respective bedrooms, leaving only Cilan and Iris.

"You and Fraxure pulled off quite a delectable performance today!" complimented Cilan.

"Gee, thanks Cilan!" chirped Iris, "Well, I guess I'd better be going to bed now! Fraxure and I are pretty exhausted!" She then turned a light shade of pink, "Hey Cilan, i-if you wouldn't mind... do you want to sleep together in my bedroom tonight?"

"Eh-Ehh?!" squeaked Cilan as his face turned redder than a Tamato Berry, "We?! Us?! Together?! SLEEP?!"

"Arceus, I don't mean it like that! I-I just mean that we should... erm, share a bed for the night."

"O-Of course! I'd love to, Iris."

Cilan and Iris made their way back to the latter's bedroom. Since Fraxure was now too big to rest in Iris' hair anymore, it would just be the two of them sleeping in the bed. Once they were both changed into their pajamas, they slipped into the bed with Iris being the first to fall asleep. Smiling, Cilan hugged his lover's body and nuzzled his head into her long violet hair as he too fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 13/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yeah, this chapter was a pretty laid-back and happy one! But, since this is based on Dangan Ronpa, I wouldn't let my guard down so easily if I were any of you~! Stay tuned for Chapter 6!


	6. Dial M for Motive

**Author's Note:** Hey, everybody~! I couldn't update as quick as I usually do because of High School and Homework getting in the way... But, the grand moment has finally arrived! Although, I wonder how many readers I'll still have after this little update... Enjoy the chapter!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon, nor do I own Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

Cilan opening his eyes the next morning to find himself still next to a sleeping Iris. As he watched her sleep away what was presumed to be morning, he couldn't help but smile at how adorable she looked. He kissed the 15-year old girl's soft lips, causing her to slowly wake up.

"Good morning, sleepyhead~" said Cilan softly.

"Hrmm... morning, Cilan," mumbled Iris, "Is it breakfast time yet?"

"Just about. Your clock says that it's 7:05 am, so we must have somehow slept through Monoteddi's morning greeting."

"Well in that case, let's go get some grub! I'm starving!"

Once the two were dressed in their daytime attire (with Iris wearing her newer outfit after much pleading from a puppy-eyed Cilan), they headed off to the cafeteria. Cress was going around writing down everyone's breakfast choices and handed the paper to Brock and Chili (who volunteered to cook the food since his brother wasn't up yet) in the kitchen.

"Hey, look who's finally up!" exclaimed Ash energetically, "Mornin' guys!"

"Morning to you too, Ash!" responded Iris.

"What would you two Luvdisc like for breakfast~?" teased Cress, notebook ready in hand, "I'm sure Brock and Chili can make something special for you two."

"Um, 'Luvdisc'?" asked Ash, "But Cress, they don't look anything like a pair of Luvdisc at all!"

"I don't mean it in a literal sense, Ash. It's merely a term for two people who love each other. In this case, Cilan and Iris love each other quite a bit."

"Well, of course they love each other! Me and them are all best friends together!"

"Goddamn it, nevermind..." groaned Cress.

Just as everyone was enjoying themselves and their breakfast, Monoteddi suddenly appeared on top of one of the tables.

"Good morning to you all! Are my testees enjoying this lovely morning?" asked Monoteddi in its usual eccentric tone.

"Yeah, we are," sneered Trip, "What the heck do you want?"

"Oh nothing much, Mr. Trip!" answered Monoteddi, "See, I've noticed that you all seem to be quite chipper today! So then I thought, 'I wonder if they'll still be happy after this little experiment I'd like to try on them'?"

"Um, 'experiment'?" gulped Dawn as Piplup glared from her arms, "You mean like a scientific experiment?"

"Correct, Miss Dawn~!" confirmed Monoteddi, "However, there's no need to be mortified; I'm not going to dissect any of you like Politoeds, no no! I'm just merely conducting a little test to determine whether or not my hypothesis is correct! So, would you all be so kind as to follow me to the Computer Lab?"

The students followed their demonic Teddiursa headmaster to the second floor of the academy, where they were all instructed to take a seat at each monitor and put on the pair of headphones presented. On each monitor flashed a video message from their loved ones (Cilan, Cress, and Chili had nearly identical messages, though), such as May's message from her mother Caroline, her father Petalburg Gym Leader Norman, and her now 11-year old brother Max sitting beside his partner Kirlia; Brock's message from his parents and several siblings, and even Dawn's from her mother Johanna.

But, everyone's "Hi"s and "How are you doing"s immediately halted upon the screen going static and changing to a much more horrible sight. Some had their loved ones' bodies on the floor unmoving, some had theirs vanished completely with a destroyed environment, others had both.

"M-Mom!" cried Ash, "Are you okay?! Oh Arceus, please wake up!"

"Daisy?! Lily?! Violet?! Where are you?!" wailed Misty, "Come back!"

"The Striaton Gym!" shouted Cilan, Chili, and Cress, "It's completely frozen over and ruined!"

The students immediately shut off their monitors with faces of horror. Dawn, Iris, and Brock kept repeating "no, no, no, no, no" to themselves in disbelief, a shocked Burgundy stood there frozen solid like a sleeping Cryogonal, and even Trip of all people clutched his head and began sobbing.

"Upupupupu, it looks like my hypothesis was proven correctly~!" laughed Monoteddi, "You see, I figured that if I showed you all these horrid videos, that it would give you all a nice motivation...** FOR MURDER**! If any of you truly care enough to see if your family and friends are safe and sound, just kill a student and you'll be as free as a Fletchling~!"

Without another word, Monoteddi vanished from the room. The other students soon left the room as well (with Trip clinging to Ash like a human crutch), although they were overcome with fear and indecision. Everyone was trying their best to fight back their paranoia, but the more they did, the bigger their feelings of despair grew.

* * *

Later on at around 8:30 pm, Cilan found a forlorn Trip sitting alone in a classroom. Upon closer inspection, he could see that the Super High School Level Photographer had been crying his eyes out.

"Trip, is everything alright?" asked Cilan as he approached the dirty-blonde haired boy.

"I'm fine, Cilan," sniffed Trip in a pouty tone, "Just leave me alone."

"You don't sound fine to me. Would you like to talk about it?"

"And why the hell would I do that?"

"Because, talking about it will make you feel better. I'm not forcing you to bring it up, but just so you know, I'm always willing to listen. But, since you don't feel comfortable, I suppose I'll just leave you alone."

Before Cilan could exit the classroom, he felt his sleeve being tugged at by Trip, who at the moment had a face like that of a lost Lilipup. Cilan then took a seat beside Trip with open ears.

"So, what seems to be the problem?" asked Cilan, "Is it because of the video Monoteddi showed you?"

Trip didn't respond, but simply nodded yes with disdain.

"It was horrible..." choked Trip with tears in his eyes, "M-Mom... a-and Liz! Sh-She, they both-!"

"Please try to slow down, Trip," said Cilan calmly as he tried to soothe his friend, "Just calm down a little and say it slowly. Now, what happened to your mother and this Liz girl you're talking about?"

"I... I have a 20-year old sister named Elizabeth..." sniffled Trip, "And before I got my letter to Tao Academy, our mother got really sick. When I finally left to come here, Liz promised me that she'd take care of Mom until she got better, and that she wouldn't let me down."

Trip's eyes then widened as traumatic tears began to leak from them. He gripped his head with both hands in an attempt to calm himself, but it didn't appear to be working.

"But when I saw that video...!" breathed Trip, "I-I just couldn't believe it! There were these guys, and they were carrying Mom's body away in a body bag on a stretcher! B-But worst of all...!" His words quickly turned into heartbreaking sobs as he struggled to get the words out, "Liz's body! Her body was hanged from the ceiling fan, and I saw a note that read 'I'm sorry, Trip... I broke my promise.'...!"

Still wracked with grief, Trip harshly slammed a fist onto the desk and completely broke down in despair. Cilan then tried to comfort him, but the sobs didn't change one bit.

"What the hell am I supposed to do?!" wailed Trip, "If I get executed for killing someone, and Mom and Liz turn out to be fine, they'd be heartbroken! And even if I do get away with it, everyone would die because of me being a selfish bastard!"

"Shhh, it's alright, Trip," assured Cilan in a soft tone, "If you ask me, you shouldn't fall for Monoteddi's tricks. Besides, those videos were most likely edited just to get us to commit such a heinous act! For all we know, your mother and older sister could be doing fine!"

"R...Really?" sniffled Trip, "You really think they're okay, Cilan?"

"Of course! I can't be certain that I'm 100 percent correct, but you just gotta have faith and ignore Monoteddi's schemes!"

"...That means a lot to me, Cilan. Thank you so much. From now on, I'll try my best to not fall into despair! I'm gonna keep going for Mom and Liz!"

"That's the way to go, Trip!" encouraged Cilan as he began to leave the classroom.

"Oh, and Cilan?" added Trip.

"Yes?"

"Promise me you won't tell anyone about this, 'kay? I wouldn't want them thinking I'm some sort of sap."

"I promise!"

"Thanks," said Trip with a smirk.

However, not even two minutes after Cilan had left the classroom, a male scream of pure terror was heard from the Dormitory Wing. To make matters worse, his heart jumped at the announcement he had wished Monoteddi would never make again.

"Ding dang dong! Ding dang dong! Looks like a body has been discovered~!" Monoteddi rang out, "Oooh, so exciting!"

Without hesitation, Cilan rushed towards the targeted area of the school, only to see a teary-eyed Cress back out of a room with a hand over his mouth.

"Cress, what's wrong?!" asked Cilan, "Did you find the body?!"

"I... I think it's best if you just went inside and saw for yourself..." choked Cress as his knees fell to the floor.

When Cilan followed Cress' suggestion, he immediately wished he hadn't. His shamrock-colored eyes widened with shock and grief at the identity of the corpse.

He let out a similar scream of terror as his eyes were fixed on Chili; who was lying on his freshly blood-stained bed with a cloth tied tight around his mouth and his brilliant ruby eyes closed shut.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 12/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Well, I sure as hell hope Chili wasn't anyone's favorite character! Though don't get me wrong, I love the Striaton Triplets with all of my heart. And because of that, I love to torture them with my writing! So, stay tuned for Chapter 7!


	7. Investigation Period 2

**Author's Note:** Well guys, here's the second Investigation Period for ya! I think this one's a little longer than the last Investigation, though I'm trying my best not to rush any of these chapters! So, please enjoy reading this update!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon or Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

Very little words could describe the grief that Cilan and Cress were feeling. Each time they laid their eyes on their deceased brother's body, neither one of them could catch a breath and both brothers felt like they were going to vomit. Pansear then appeared out of its Poké Ball with a worried expression.

"S-Sear...?" cried Pansear as it began to shake Chili's shoulder. "SEAR?! PANSEAR!"

The heartbroken High Temp Pokémon began to wail with angry tears upon realizing that his Trainer was gone forever. Cilan was quick to try and comfort Pansear, although his own grief was just as extreme.

"Damn it...!" cursed Cilan, "Why him?! Why my brother?!"

"I just can't believe this!" choked Cress.

The brothers' grief was interrupted by Dawn entering the room. She was about to ask about what happened, but the words were replaced by a gasp of shock. The sight of the Super High School Level Chef's corpse was horrifying enough to even scare Piplup into quivering behind Dawn's boot.

"Holy Arceus..." breathed Dawn, "This is horrible! Who could have done this?!"

"We don't know..." replied Cress as he held Chili's limp hand between his palms, "But whoever did it... DESERVES NO MERCY!"

"Attention, attention!" chimed Monoteddi from the intercom, "I know it's half an hour earlier than usual, but I must advise all of you to head off to bed! After all, you're all going to need your rest for investigating Chili's murder tomorrow!"

Dawn then picked up the still quivering Piplup and somberly headed towards her bedroom. Cilan too stood up, but first offered Cress a hand up.

"...I'm won't leave him," breathed Cress, looking down at the floor.

"What?" asked Cilan, "Cress, you should be returning to your own bedroom and-"

"I SAID I WON'T LEAVE HIM!" screamed a tearful Cress as he possessively hugged Chili's arm, "I absolutely refuse to abandon my little brother!"

"...I understand..." sighed Cilan, "In that case, we'll both spend the night here until morning."

"Both? You're staying too, Cilan?"

"Why not? It's the least I can do for both of my big brothers..."

Cilan and Cress both agreed to sleep on the floor rather than directly beside Chili's body (not to mention, Pansear had already curled up under his deceased Trainer's right arm, weeping as it nuzzled the limb in futile hopes that he'll wake up). Before Cress fell asleep beside his youngest brother, he took one last glance at Chili.

"Don't worry, Chili," He whispered, "I swear to Arceus that I'll avenge you!"

* * *

Despite Monoteddi's ecstatic wake-up call the next morning, the atmosphere in Chili's bedroom was very grim. Cilan and Cress checked the bed hoping that last night's tragedy was a mere nightmare, but the sight of their brother's bloodstained corpse unfortunately told them otherwise. However, Cilan then noticed something particular about Chili's chest area, so he began to unbutton the body's vest and undershirt.

"Um, Cilan, what do you think you're doing?" asked Cress, a little disturbed.

But, both brothers' eyes widened at the sight of a large diagonal gash that cut deep into Chili's ribcage. And upon untying the thick cloth around Chili's mouth, they saw a large bloodstain. Cilan then took a small sniff of the cloth and detected an unusual scent.

"What is it?" asked Cress.

"Funny, this cloth has an aroma identical to... CHLOROFORM!?" gasped Cilan.

At that moment, the other students came into Chili's bedroom and were all shocked (minus Dawn) at the sight of the Super High School Level Chef's dead body.

"So it's true..." whispered Misty.

"I can't believe Chili's dead..." muttered Iris, "This is horrifying!"

"Tres terrifiant, indeed!" cried Burgundy.

The students then turned around as Monoteddi rang a silver handbell from behind.

"Now now, Miss Burgundy," it said, "I don't think 'horrifying' is quite the right word for it! In fact, I would have said it was tres merveilleux!"

"Excusez-moi, Monsieur Peluche!" snapped the B-Rank Connoisseuse, "But this is the opposite of wonderful!"

"In case you haven't noticed, you dumb bear," yawned a slightly weary Georgia, "Another one of our classmates just kicked the bucket!"

"Oh, I have noticed, Miss Georgia! Thank you for worrying~!" chirped Monoteddi, "Anyways, I'm giving you all the usual two hour time limit to gather evidence! Toodle-Loo, my precious test subjects~!"

Once Monoteddi left the bedroom, Cilan pulled out his magnifying glass and brown sleuthing hat and exclaimed his usual "It's Detective Time" phrase, but in a much more serious manner (likely because he was still upset over Chili's untimely death). Everyone except him, Brock, Dawn, and May went off to find evidence elsewhere.

"Alright, let's see," pondered Cilan, "According to my PokéID, my brother was murdered at around 8:35 last night. The cause of death was a blow to the chest with a sharp object."

"Hey Cilan, check this out!" exclaimed May as she pointed to the air vent above Chili's bed.

"That's strange... the hatch is hanging wide open and there's a large smear of blood! But how could-"

Cilan's inquiry was cut off by an angry shout. He told the other three to stay put while he tracked the noise coming from Georgia's bedroom. Before entering, he noticed that the latch on Georgia's doorknob had been totaled. After downloading the info into his PokéID, he went inside of the room, only to witness a violent spat between Cress and Georgia.

"Cress, for the last time, I didn't do it!" snapped Georgia.

"Oh really?" questioned a furious Cress, "If you aren't the culprit, then why did I find the murder weapon and your gloves underneath your bed?!"

"I-I don't know! Look, I have absolutely no reason to hurt Chili, so I wouldn't even think about killing him!"

"Liar! YOU MURDERED MY BROTHER!"

Just as Cress was about to lash out at Georgia, Cilan quickly got between them and shielded the Super High School Level Dragon Buster from the bluenette's misguided fury. As Cress continued to try and lunge out at Georgia, Cilan harshly pinned him against a wall.

"Cress, please calm down!" pleaded Cilan, "There's no way to be sure that Georgia did it!"

"Excuse me!? Then how do you explain those, Cilan?!" objected Cress, pointing to the bloody ax and a pair of Georgia's yellow gloves on her bed, "If you ask me, I'd say the proof is right in the pudding!"

"_CRESS_. I promise, when we find every last piece of evidence, the real culprit will be revealed during the trial. Then, and only then, will I let you have your way."

"...Very well then. However, I've still got my eyes on you, Georgia..." hissed Cress as he lifted his blue peek-a-bangs to reveal a full death glare.

"Tch, whatever..." muttered Georgia, rolling her eyes.

Cilan's eyes then shifted to the ceiling air vent right above the bed. It was wide open like the one in Chili's room. Once the open air vent, axe, and Georgia's gloves were downloaded as evidence, he left to go see if any of the others had found anything. Suddenly, he bumped into Trip, who was walking beside Serperior.

"Hey Cilan," said Trip, "Serperior and I were investigating Chili's room after you left, and we found some pretty crucial evidence..."

"Really?! Show me!" exclaimed Cilan.

As the two boys returned to Chili's bedroom, Trip pointed up the open air vents that were still stained with smears of blood.

"Serperior found that the blood smears in the vent make some sort of trail," reported Trip, "And when I followed him, he managed to slither all the way to the kitchen, which is where I took one pretty crucial photograph."

Trip handed the photo in question to Cilan, who gasped at the scene presented. Grabbing Trip by the wrist, he rushed towards the kitchen, only to find the floor and a couple of drawers covered in blood. Cilan quickly downloaded the major evidence just as the familiar chimes rang throughout the school.

"Ah, time's up, everyone~!" announced Monoteddi from the wall TV. "I hope you all have the necessary evidence you need, because it's time for School Trial number two!"

Both boys nodded once at each other before heading off to the group of students gathered at the cage elevator. When everyone had gathered inside, the elevator descended until it reached the dreaded Trial Room. As the students entered, Cress gave Cilan a determined, yet serious glance and the green-haired Connoisseur nodded once in response.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 12/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** As a heads up, the trial in the next chapter's probably gonna be a shot in the face if you guys haven't already figured out the culprit. So, stay tuned for Chapter 8!


	8. School Trial 2

**Author's Note:** Ah yes, the glorious moment you've all been waiting for~! The (dreaded) second Trial! I was pretty excited to write this Chapter (though I don't hate any of the characters), so please enjoy the update!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Pokémon, nor do I own Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

Each student went to the same stands they were at last time (there were plates attached to each one, so it was easy to remember). Bianca's expression turned into a rather grim one at the sight of the nearby Post-Mortem Sign with Cheren's face crossed out with a black "X" (which, according to Monoteddi, symbolizes a culprit in contrast to a red "X" symbolizing a victim).

"It'll be alright, Bee," assured Georgia as she placed a gentle hand on her friend's shoulder, "Just don't worry."

"Ladies, Gentleman, and Cress!" Monoteddi began.

"H-Hey!" objected Cress.

"It's time to begin our second School Trial~!" the robotic Teddiursa continued. "You all know the rules; discuss the case, find the true culprit, they get executed, blah blah blah, so let's get started!"

"So, the victim was Chili," stated Ash, "And he was killed sometime last night!"

"Yeah, but _what_ time to be exact?" wondered Iris.

"Well, Cress and Cilan didn't find the body until about 8:50-ish, so maybe that was it!" Dawn pointed out.

"That's not likely, Dawn!" objected Cilan. "First of all, my PokéID states that my brother died at 8:35. Second, if it had been at 8:50, don't you think either me or Cress would have noticed?"

"O-Oh, that's right!" agreed Dawn, "Sorry..."

"No need to apologize, let's just move on with the case!" insisted Cilan. "Now, for the cause of death, my PokéID listed it as a 'blow to the chest with a sharp object'."

"A sharp object?" pondered Georgia, "That could mean anything..."

"There are a lot of sharp objects in the school, but I'd bet they used one of the knives from the kitchen..." sighed Brock.

"Not so fast!" exclaimed Cilan, pointing a finger. "The murder weapon was not a knife at all!"

"It wasn't?" asked Brock, "Then, what did the culprit use to murder Chili, Cilan?"

"An ax," stated Cress bitterly. His blue orbs then shifted over to Georgia, "While Georgia and I were looking for evidence, guess what I found under her bed next to her gloves? That's right, an ax stained with my little brother's blood! I think it's quite obvious that Georgia's the culprit!"

"What?!" gasped Bianca as she turned to her friend with pleading eyes. "Georgia, did you really kill Chili?! Oh, please say it ain't so!"

"It _ain't_ so!" assured Georgia, "I didn't leave a single ax wound in that body!"

"How dare you refer to him as 'that body'?!" yelled an outraged Cress as he approached Georgia, "My brother is not some simple object to be tossed aside! Admit it, you killed him!"

"But... she couldn't have killed Chili..." said Bianca with a worried look on her face.

"Oh really?" asked Cress in a slightly calmer tone, "And what makes you say that, Bianca?"

"Cilan said the culprit killed Chili at 8:35, right?" She said, "Well, Georgia couldn't have done it because we were spending time together from about 8:20 until about nine."

"Spending... time together?" breathed Cress, "Really?"

"That's right, pretty boy," snarled Georgia, "Ever since Monoteddi showed us those horrible videos, Bianca thought a little R and R would help clear our minds."

"And it did!" chirped Bianca, showing everyone the photos on her PokéID, "We went to the salon, trained our Pokémon, took a little swim at the pool, and even had a few treats! It was so much fun!"

The students then stumbled across a photo of Georgia, Bianca, Stoutland, Emboar, Umbreon, and Beartic wearing flower crowns made from the flowers in the Indoor Gardens, and looked at Georgia with curious looks on their faces. The redheaded female quickly turned away with a pout and a blush running across her face.

"Flower crowns?" scoffed Burgundy, "I guess beneath that rocky exterior, you're actually as soft as a Whimsicott!"

"You got a problem with that, frenchie?" growled Georgia, still blushing, "FYI, those flower crowns are special since Bianca worked so hard on them! Hell, she was nice enough to make Beartic one..."

"Alright, so now that we've established that's it's not Georgia or Bianca with their sissy flower crowns..." said Trip, his words earning another snarl from Georgia.

"We still have to figure out who the culprit is, and how they committed the murder!" Iris pointed out.

Cilan thought for a bit to see if he was missing any vital information. He let out a gasp of realization as certain pieces of evidence came to mind.

"I've got it!" He announced. "During the investigation, I noticed that the ceiling vents in Chili's room, Georgia's room, and the kitchen were wide open!"

"And the reason?" stated Trip as he presented the photo of the blood stained kitchen on his camera, "Chili was actually murdered in the kitchen and the culprit was nimble enough to climb into the vents to drop his corpse in his bedroom."

"Which would explain why I saw some blood smears in the vent," added Cilan.

"In addition to that," stated Cress, "The culprit knocked Chili out with chloroform, hence the cloth tied around his mouth."

"Then that means whoever the culprit is, they must be someone with incredible climbing skills..." pondered Iris.

"You mean like... _you_, Iris?" questioned Trip.

"Eh?! M-Me?!" gasped Iris, "Hey now, just because I'm an awesome climber doesn't mean I'm the killer! B-Besides, Ash is just as good a climber!"

"That may be true, but I didn't kill him!" objected Ash. "Besides, wouldn't the culprit need to be a good jumper too? You know, since they need to reach the ceiling?"

"Exactly, Ash," agreed Trip, "And even if they didn't jump up, they could still use something large as a step. If I'm not mistaken, Fraxure seems pretty big enough, don't you think?"

"And I think sometime last night," hissed Georgia, still angry about being framed, "I saw you clutching a bloody tear in one of the legs of your other outfit. Did ya happen to cut your leg inside of the vents, Little Miss Killer? Is that why you're suddenly back to your old clothes?"

"That doesn't prove anything, Georgia!" objected Iris, "I could have cut it on something totally different!"

"Maybe so," Trip pointed out, "But, how do you explain this?" He then held up a small plastic bag containing another crucial piece of evidence: A small clump of dark violet hair. "Oh, and don't try and pin it on Burgundy either; the shade of purple is way too dark to match."

Iris tried to think of another comeback, but her mind was at a total blank. Cilan quickly stood in front of her, holding his arms out in a defensive manner.

"W-Wait a minute, you two!" objected Cilan, "You can't just go jumping to conclusions like that! After all, there's no way my lovely Iris would do something so heinous! Erm, t-tell them, Iris!"

Much to the S-Class Connoisseur's dismay, Iris merely turned her head away with guilt. Cilan's face quickly shifted from worry to terror his lover's lack of agreement.

"I-Iris?!" gasped Cilan, "No... you just couldn't have..."

"Since we've got all the evidence," Cress began with a serious look on his face, "Let's piece this whole mystery together. To put their plan into action, the culprit first took a little trip to the Storage Room on the first floor to get the chloroform, cloth, and ax. Next, they had Fraxure use his immense strength to break into Georgia's room and steal her gloves so that no fingerprints would be left on the ax's handle. Once they had on Georgia's gloves, Fraxure gave them a boost up into the air vents where they kept traversing until they saw the closest person below. Having chosen their target, they descended into the kitchen where they snuck up on Chili with the chloroform-stained cloth. The minute my brother was unconscious, the culprit killed him in one hack with the ax. They then dragged his bleeding body through the kitchen's air vent all the way to his bedroom, where in doing so, a piece of sharp loose metal scraped their thigh and tore their other pair of pants. Once they dropped Chili's body onto his bed, the culprit traversed their way back to Georgia's room where they stashed the evidence underneath her bed in order to frame her. That is how you did it, isn't it... Iris?"

Overcome by guilt, the Dragon Tamer buried her tearful face in her hands and began to sob. Cilan, still in denial, approached Cress with an outraged look in his eyes.

"Why..." breathed Cilan, "Why are you trying to hurt Iris?! There's no way she would ever kill Chili!"

"Cilan, the evidence pieces together and it all points to _her_," retorted Cress as he glared coldly at Iris. "She's the reason our brother is dead, so she deserves the execution that's coming to her!"

"I couldn't have said it better myself~!" chuckled Monoteddi, "So, before we waste anymore time, let's begin the guilty vote, shall we?"

"Now hold on a minute!" pleaded Cilan, "Shouldn't we at least hear Iris' side of the story first? I-I'm sure she's got something to clear her name!"

"Well... I suppose we could let her speak," agreed Monoteddi, "Go ahead, Miss Iris~! Speak if you will!"

"...Cilan," sighed Iris, "As much as I'd love to say that I'm not the one who killed Chili..."

"Well then, what are you waiting for, Iris?" asked Cilan, "S-Say it!"

"...I'd be lying if I did say so," confessed Iris somberly. "Yes, I admit it; I killed Chili."

Upon hearing Iris' horrifying confession, Cilan clutched his chest upon feeling his heart shatter into pieces.

"No..." He whispered, "Why... why did you...?!"

"M-My video..." answered Iris, "I just couldn't take it! The Village of Dragons; everything was on fire and all the Dragon-type Pokémon were wounded and even dying! Grandpa Drayden and the Village Elder were even trapped inside a building gasping for help! As the Gym Leader of the Opelucid Gym and next in line to become Unova's Champion, I need to protect those dear to me! After seeing everyone I love hurt because of my absence, I thought I'd failed! So... I killed Chili and tried to frame Georgia so I could escape."

As if Iris' tears weren't already full of guilt and shame, the words that came out of Monoteddi's mouth made them worse.

"Upupupu~! It looks like my motive worked after all!" cackled the demonic Headmaster, "Although, it's quite a shame that all of those videos were fake!"

"WHAT?!" gasped the students.

"YOU BASTARD!" bellowed Cilan as angry tears fell from his eyes, "Do you even care about what you've done?! I lost one of my big brothers because of you!"

"And now, you're also about to lose your traitor of a girlfriend, because it's time to vote~!" chirped Monoteddi sadistically.

"No, don't do it, please!" pleaded Cilan, "Don't take Iris away from me!"

The very sight of Cilan's pain made all of the students hesitate (with the exception of Cress, who wanted nothing more for Chili to be avenged), but nonetheless, they all voted for the same person. The large screen in the back of the room played the familiar fanfare as Iris' face popped up above the red "GUILTY".

"Correct, correct~!" cheered Monoteddi, "The culprit behind the murder of Chili is Iris! However, I must point out that Mr. Cilan clearly wasn't paying attention, since he voted for someone else! Pffft, some 'Super High School Level Connoisseur' you are!"

"This can't be happening..." sobbed Iris, "I don't want to die..."

"Leave her alone...!" wailed Cilan as he protectively wrapped his arms around Iris, "T-TAKE ME INSTEAD, PLEASE! I'LL DO ANYTHING!"

"Now now, Mr. Cilan," said Monoteddi as it shoved Cilan off of Iris, "Do you really think it's fair to punish someone for something they didn't do? If you ask me, Miss Iris should be the one to pay for her misdeeds! Well, as you would say, It's Punishment Time!"

* * *

Once Monoteddi slammed his Metagross-designed gavel onto the red button, the large screen showed a pixelated Iris being dragged away by Monoteddi with the words "**IRIS HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY; COMMENCING EXECUTION**" below it. Iris soon found herself in the dead center of a pedestal inside the Unova Pokémon League Champion's room. Two serpent dragons, one black with red eyes, the other white with blue eyes, then appeared on each side of the mountain. Monoteddi (dressed as Iris' ideal Champion outfit) then began beating rhythmically on a taiko drum as the dragons began to swirl around Iris. In an attempt to control the mighty beasts, Iris moved her arms in a fashion in which the dragons followed. From beneath the grand staircase, Cilan dashed forward in a vain attempt to save his beloved. But the second he had reached her, the two dragons had merged into one gray dragon with gold eyes and released a powerful blast of fire at the ground; in turn charring Iris and sending Cilan flying. Just before Cilan could hit the staircase, Monoteddi stomped on a nearby button that opened up a large trap door in the stairs.

"**IRIIIIIIIIISSSS**!" screamed Cilan as he tearfully fell through the large hole.

The last thing the S-Class Connoisseur saw before slipping into complete darkness was the body of his true love being messily chomped on and swallowed up by the Kyurem-like dragon.

* * *

**Students remaining:** 11/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Well, that was a fun chapter, wasn't it~? To all of my fellow Wishfulshippers, please don't kill me! And the name of Iris' execution is "Year of the Dragon". It was originally supposed to be "Chinese New Year", but the Dragon isn't the only animal in the Chinese Zodiac. PS, the music I imagined playing during the execution was called "Agni Kai" (for any Avatar: The Last Airbender) fans, and Cilan falling through the trap door was supposed to be similar to what happened in Episode 10 of Madoka Magica. So with that (if you guys haven't rage quitted after this trial), stay tuned for Chapter 9~!


	9. A Shattered Brotherly Bond

**Author's Note:** Ah yes, my favorite time of day! Updating my stories! This chapter (if you look at the Chapter name) has quite a bit of drama in it! So, please enjoy the update~!

**Disclaimer:** I own neither Pokémon nor Dangan Ronpa.

* * *

Cilan slowly opened his eyes, but instead of waking up in his bedroom, he found himself somehow in his pajamas and in the school's infirmary. He tried to sit up from the bed, but he clutched his bandaged forehead in pain.

"Oww..." groaned Cilan, "I must have hit my head or some-"

His sentence was cut off upon remembering the events that had transpired. Rushing out of the infirmary, he headed towards the Dormitory Wing. First, he tried to open Chili's door, only for it to be locked shut. He then tried the same with Iris' door across the hall, but adding to his grief, it was locked as well.

"No..." sobbed Cilan as he fell to his knees in disbelief, "They can't be... they just can't be...!"

"Well well well, look who's finally awake!" mocked Monoteddi as he suddenly appeared in front of the grieving Connoisseur. "After being unconscious for two days, I'm surprised you're still alive, Mr. Cilan~!"

Despite his surprise at the fact that he was out longer than he thought, Cilan was still furious at Monoteddi for causing the deaths of his brother and lover. Seething, he lunged at the black and white colored Teddiursa and grabbed it by the neck.

"You monster..." hissed Cilan as Monoteddi squirmed in his grasp, "Do you even care about what you've done?!"

"ACK! M-More importantly, I should be asking you the same question! After all, any form of assault towards Headmaster Monoteddi is against the rules!"

From the ceiling, a large gun began to shoot several types of cleavers and knives at Cilan. But at that moment, Cress showed up and pushed him to safety. Despite the former having quite a few bloody cuts on his sides, both boys were fine.

"Aww, isn't that sweet?" asked Monoteddi sarcastically, "An older sibling risking their life to protect their baby brother! How chivalrous, Miss or Mr. Cress~!"

"For the last time, Monoteddi..." growled an annoyed Cress, "I. AM. A. BOY."

"...Really?!" gasped Monoteddi, "Funny, the girly hairstyle told me otherwise. But, I digress; have a lovely day, you two!"

Once Monoteddi was away from them, Cress reached out a hand to help Cilan up, only for the latter to sneer at him and shakily push himself up.

"And what's with the attitude?" asked Cress, "I do believe I just saved your life."

"...Saved my life...? Saved _MY_ LIFE?!" screamed Cilan, "Well, what about Iris' life, hmm? You could have saved her life, but NO! You and the others just had to go and selfishly vote her guilty just to save your sorry asses!"

The Super High School Level Waiter couldn't believe the words coming out of his brother's mouth. His face shifted from an expression of disbelief to one of anger.

"How _dare_ you, Cilan?!" snapped Cress, "What you see as 'selfish' was actually the right thing to do. If we had voted for someone else, we would have all died while a filthy traitor goes free! If I recall, you did say, and I quote 'The real culprit will be revealed during the trial. Then and only then will I let you have your way'. Well, lo and behold! I did just that by exposing Iris as the murderer she was! And guess what? I **wasn't** just going to let Chili's death go in vain like that just because of your petty feelings for her!"

"Grrr, that's just like you, Cress... Always trying to be the 'right' one. Heh, you're always thinking that as long as it benefits you, it's the best option? But guess what, Cressy? What you see as being the 'big brave hero' is really just you BEING A SELFISH ASSHOLE! If anything, _you_ deserve be the next one to-"

Cilan's angry words were cut off by a sudden slap to his face from Cress. The Super High School Level Connoisseur shot an angry, yet shocked look at his brother's face that was stained with tears of disgust.

"You just don't get it, do you, Cilan?" breathed Cress, "Do you ever once think that as the eldest of the Striaton Triplets, I'm just trying to protect you?! In case you've forgotten, the treacherous girl you so foolishly fell in love with**_ murdered our brother_** in cold blood! I've already lost Chili, and I don't want to lose you too! If anything, Cilan, the selfish one is you!"

"...I hate you..." hissed Cilan as he looked away with his teary eyes closed shut.

Cress clasped a hand over his mouth and without a word, glared at Cilan and ran back to his room; slamming the door behind him. An irritated Cilan walked back to his room in a huff, ignoring the muffled sobs of his brother, who was hugging his knees on the other side of his own door.

Minutes later, Cilan came out of his bedroom fully dressed (although the bandages were still wrapped around his forehead). He marched down to the cafeteria where everyone had faces of relief. But, one look at Cilan's dark expression quickly melted those relieved faces.

"Y-You feeling alright, Cilan?" asked Ash, only to get a frightening glare from Cilan.

"Well, someone seems a bit huffy this morning..." muttered Trip.

"...Shut up," snarled Cilan, actually managing to make Trip jump in surprise.

"Have you seen Cress?" inquired Misty, "We haven't seen your brother all morning."

"Tch, I wouldn't be worried..." fumed Cilan, "With that putrid flavor he's got, he can be the next one murdered for all I care."

"Oh come on, now!" insisted Bianca, "You can't truly mean that, Cilan!"

Without even bothering a response, Cilan took a seat far away from the others and sadly fiddled with his treasured Legend Badge necklace. The more he looked at it, the more his memories of his beloved Iris stung his heart. He shut his eyes in an attempt to fight back his tears. Cress, who's eyes were weary and puffy from crying his eyes out, came into the cafeteria giving polite greetings to everyone (minus Cilan, of course). He gave one look at his brooding younger brother and glumly sighed as he took a seat near the others.

"Poor Cilan and Cress," whispered May, "It's so terrible they're fighting."

"You said it," agreed Georgia.

"First the death of Chili, and it turns out our friend Iris is the one who did it..." sighed Ash.

"Why does this have to happen to us?" whimpered Dawn.

"You realize that I can hear every word you all are saying, right?" wondered Cress.

"Oh, sorry!" apologized Misty.

"No, it's quite alright," assured Cress, "After all, it's only natural that you'd all be concerned about us."

"Actually, it's not alright," retorted Cilan as he got up from his seat, "Now if you'll excuse me, I need some alone time. I refuse to be around my insensitive classmates any longer..."

Slamming the doors behind him, everyone sighed in a worried tone (Cress more worried out of them all). Bianca decided to get up and go talk to Cilan, only to be grabbed at the wrist by Georgia.

"Bianca, you sure you wanna do this?" asked Georgia, "Cilan doesn't seem to be in the mood for your mystical 'pep talk' right now."

"Don't worry, Georgia," Bianca told her, "I've got this!"

Bianca followed Cilan to the Indoor Gardens, where she saw him stroking a purple iris flower as tear drops fell onto the petals. As he cradled the plant close to his chest, she heard him choke out a few heartbroken words.

"Iris...!" sniffled Cilan as he stared at the flower, "Why did you have to betray me like this? Not only have I lost my dear brother, but now you're gone too..."

As Bianca slowly walked towards him with the utmost remorse, Cilan shot a glare at her once her being came into view.

"What do you want, Bianca?" sighed Cilan, "I'd prefer to be left alone at the moment..."

"I just... thought you could use a little company," responded Bianca as she took a seat next to Cilan on the bench.

Turning his head away, Cilan shifted a bit further away from Bianca. The blonde Lab Assistant gave a sigh at the Connoisseur's misery.

"Look, I know you're still upset about your brother and Iris..." sighed Bianca, "But, it's just not healthy to wallow around in grief for the rest of your life. Trust me, I've been through the same thing you're going through now."

"Oh really? How so?"

"..Remember what happened with Cheren and Gary? Well, after Cheren was executed, I kept blaming myself because I thought my own stupidity killed both him and Gary. But then, Georgia came along and brought me out of that despair slump! You wanna know what she said to me?"

"...Alright, what did she say to you?"

"Well, she basically told me that it's okay to mourn for the ones you love, but it's not good to just let your grief take over your life. The best thing to do is to never forget those who are gone, but you should keep getting stronger for their sake! Believe me, I know for a fact that Chili and Iris wouldn't want you to be sad like this. It just wouldn't be the Cilan they know and love... right?"

As the encouraging words rang inside of his ears, Cilan's eyes began to well up with tears again and he began to bawl into Bianca's shoulder.

"I-It's just not fair!" wailed Cilan as Bianca stroked his back, "Neither of them deserved to die! I mean, I know I should blame Iris for killing my brother; my own flesh and blood! But... I just can't! She was the love of my life, and I couldn't just betray her like that! Oh, Cress is right; I'm nothing but a selfish brat!"

"Shh... it's alright, Cilan," consoled Bianca, "You shouldn't beat yourself up over it. After all, that mean old Monoteddi's the one who keeps manipulating us into doing such terrible things, so you don't have to blame Iris! I don't think you're selfish for not voting against Iris, and even if you did vote for her, it wouldn't be betrayal at all. As long as you stand as strong as your love for her and Chili, you can keep going on with life and you'll be fine!"

"Thank you... Bianca," sniffed Cilan as he wiped his tears away, "Your words mean a lot to me. But... what do I do about Cress? He probably hates me for what I said to him!"

"No, no... Cress could never hate his baby brother!" assured Bianca, "Sure, it's possible that he could be angry with you, but that doesn't mean he could ever stop loving you! But, if you're still too unsure, then just show Cress how much you're sorry."

"...You really think so? Alright... I'll try and apologize to Cress. Thank you for the uplifting words, Bianca; I really needed them."

"Hey, what are friends for?"

Once Cilan left the Indoor Gardens, he tried to look for his brother. When he couldn't find him in the new areas on the third floor, he decided to check the Dormitory Wing. As if on cue, he found Cress coming out of his bedroom and ran to his side.

"Ah, there you are, Cress!" exclaimed Cilan, "Listen, I just wa-"

"Save it," sighed Cress. "I was just leaving."

"Hold it! I actually came here to apologize for my actions earlier..." said Cilan in a sincere tone.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really. You were right; I was the selfish one, not you. After all, Chili was our brother and you just wanted to avenge his death! But you know what? You have every right to be mad at me..."

Although the Super High School Level Waiter was surprised at his youngest brother's apology, he merely turned his head away and walked off sadly without a word. Sighing, Cilan headed off in the opposite direction, feeling the utmost guilt. He then called Pansage out of his Poké Ball.

"Pansage?" asked Pansage with a worried look.

"Well, at least you still like me, Pansage..." sighed Cilan as he placed a gentle hand on the Grass Monkey Pokémon's head.

"Sage?"

"It's a long story... Let's just say that as of now, I've lost both of my brothers forever..."

* * *

**Students remaining:** 11/15

* * *

**Author's Note:** Well, that was an interesting chapter wasn't it? I'm sorry if I made Cilan a bit more short-tempered than usual, but hey; after what's happened to him, it's only normal, right? So, stay tuned for Chapter 10 (which might be a bit delayed due to school reasons...)!


End file.
